Taken, but Returned
by DragonKingDragneel25
Summary: Team RWBY and JNPR went to save some miners and secure some ancient ruins, but when a fight broke out between the White Fang and Merlot's faction, RWBY is separated and thrown into other worlds, and JNPR gets thrown in another. They adapted. They lived. However, they are soon dragged back to Remnant.
1. Chapter 1

**Taken, but Returned**

 **An: Hey, guys! Welcome to my first Multi-crossover story! This is one of the three RWBY themed stories that I am posting in celebration of RWBY vol. 5's release! The others are Grimm Ascension and Breaking Expectations (formerly known as A rose with a dash of coco).**

 **This story consists of RWBY, Tales of the Abyss, Legend of Zelda, Dragon Age, Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, and Lord of the Rings, just so you guys are aware, the how will be explained later.**

 **I hope you enjoy this story and the others. Now let's get started!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY, Tales of the Abyss, Legend of Zelda, Dragon Age, Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, or Lord of the Rings.**

 _ **One**_

 _Separated Across dimensions_

"Ugh! Not even back two days, and we're already back to work!" Ruby Rose complained as she trudged down the path to the Bullhead platform.

It had been two days since Team RWBY (Ruby) had left the island of Dr. Merlot, and all four teens were hoping for some well needed R&R. However, Beacon Academy's headmaster, Professor Ozpin, informed them that their skills were needed, along with JNPR's (Juniper) and CVFY's (Coffee), in a new Dust mine being mined by the Schnee Dust Company. According to the report, the crew found a large system of tunnels leading to old ruins, but each tunnel was running rampant with Grimm.

"I know right?!" Ruby's sister, Yang Xiao Long, moaned loudly. "I thought we had the week off!"

Blake Belladonna rolled her eyes. "Well, Professor Ozpin said he needed his best on this one," she drawled in her usual bored tone. "And he said this would help settle any hard feelings between Vale and Atlas after the Breach."

"That's unimportant at the moment!" the haughty voice of Weiss Schnee snapped as she walked out in front. "Right now, my family's newest Dust mine is under siege, and we need to secure it!"

"Oh, sure, that's _way_ more important," Blake said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"Quiet you!" she hissed.

"Couldn't Coco's team handle this, though?" Ruby whined, not wanting to give up more precious sleep she was deprived of during the Merlot incident.

"Apparently not," Blake grumbled, also not too happy about giving up her own beauty sleep and reading time for this mission.

"I know what you girls are talking about," Yang said with a dramatic sigh. She grabbed her hair and began smoothing it out. "Do you think this hair is so smooth and beautiful on its own? It's a whole day's work to get it to this level of perfection!"

"Quit complaining!" Weiss snapped again. "This is serious!"

"But…" Blake drawled, "…weren't you complaining as well before you found out about the mine?" Weiss flushed.

"I said quiet you!" she repeated, making her team laugh at her expense.

"Good. You've arrived," came the voice of their combat teacher, Glynda Goodwitch, as she stood with teams CVFY and JNPR. "I must apologize for interrupting your weekend off, but this is a very serious matter."

"It's no problem, Professor Goodwitch," Weiss said, recovering quickly from her embarrassment. The three other members of the team just grumbled incoherently at her.

"Well, now that you four are here, we can get going," she said curtly. She nodded to CFVY and JNPR and they all started towards the Bullhead.

Coco smirked to the all-girl team and adjusted her glasses. "It's going to be a genuine pleasure to work alongside you hotshots!" she told them. She turned around to enter the Bullhead, but turned her head back and called out teasingly, "Just don't be offended when _we_ steal the spotlight this time!"

Nora couldn't help but laugh at that. "Sorry, but _we're_ taking that spotlight for _ourselves!_ " Nora told the second year with the upmost confidence.

Coco laughed. "We'll see, Valkyrie! We'll see!" she shouted as her team and she loaded up in the Bullhead.

Pyrrha turned to team RWBY with a small smile. "Well, I guess that's our cue to board!" she said smiling. With that, the rest of her team agreed and boarded the Bullhead.

The four girls looked at each other and sighed. "Well, here we go again," Yang grumbled.

"Hopefully this will be relatively simple," Ruby said.

"It should be," Blake assured her. "Besides, what's the worst that can happen?"

 **Schnee Dust mine**

BANG!

CRASH!

SHINK!

BOOM!

The worst had happened.

Upon arriving at the mine, it started simply enough. Atleasian military had secured the entrance and informed the Huntress and her students of the Grimm infested tunnels and of the miners still trapped down below the earth. Glynda, and teams CVFY, JNPR, and RWBY had quickly split up to eliminate the threat.

However, it soon went downhill after that.

The White Fang had apparently decided to siege the mine to promote their cause by 'liberating' the Faunus working there and to fuel their army with Dust. The chaos this caused forced the soldiers guarding the entrance to advance into the mine in order to retreat and protect the others inside. What made matters worse was that the remnants of Merlot's faction and his mutant Grimm had set their sights on the mine as well.

What was supposed to be a simple Search and Destroy mission had now turned into a giant turf war.

Team RWBY dragged an unconscious team CFVY and Glynda into a small but spacious cave occupied by Atleasian soldiers. Every member of team CVFY was bruised and bloodied and Glynda herself had a bad cut on her forehead that Ruby couldn't get to stop bleeding.

Team RWBY was also not looking too hot themselves. After being blindsided by Grimm, White Fang, and Merlot's faction; the four girls had been thrown around like rag dolls in a washing machine before they could retaliate, which resulted in the girls having to fight the men to the death.

A fact that was weighing the all-girl team down greatly.

Ruby's shirt and cloak were cut and ripped and she was covered in blood, some of it hers, a little more being Glynda's, but most of it being White Fang grunts she had been forced to kill. Her right arm felt like it was dipped into a roaring fire, and she felt really lightheaded, curtesy of a boulder that hit her in the head during a cave-in.

Weiss's outfit was in a similar state of disrepair, but she was suffering more cuts and abrasions than Ruby due to Myrtenaster's shorter length than Ruby's massive scythe. Three long cuts from what looked like claws raced down her right arm, and her jacket had been ripped to shreds and wrapped around her arm to try and stall the bleeding.

Blake's shirt now only covered her breast, having taken too many blows from weapons. Her stomach looked similar to ground beef from all the cuts and slashes crisscrossing her flesh. She favored her left side because of several gun shots to her right knee cap. Blood ran down Gambol Shroud, and it was also riddled with dings and nicks. She was out of breath, and her left eye was swollen.

Yang was covered in blood. Being a close range fighter, she was up close and personal when blood splattered everywhere. Her arms and chest were dyed red, and her clothes were hanging off her in bloodied rags. She had dislocated her shoulder at one point and forcibly had to relocate it, so she was holding it close to her. Her precious Ember Celica was cracked badly and her hair was slowly turning red from the blood.

Currently, Ruby was trying to stop the blood flowing from the cut on Glynda's forehead, but to no avail. A soldier came over and stated he'd take over for her. She nodded shakily. "T-Thanks," she stuttered and stumbled away from her professor's prone form. The soldier picked up the Huntress and carried her to a makeshift medical center, team CVFY being grabbed by a few miners in the cave and carried to the medic tent as well.

Suddenly, Yang screamed loudly and punched the wall. "This is bullshit!" she shouted. No one bothered to reprimand her or scold her. The situation was that dire.

Blake tried to steady her breathing as she rested against a wall while Ruby tried to help Weiss with her arm. Yang began to shake from the force of her holding back her sobs. She punched the wall again. "How the hell did this happen?! Why did this happen?!" she demanded. She forced back a sob. "W-Why?!"

An explosion sounded farther in the cave, making everyone flinch. Ruby tried to tighten Weiss's bandages, but was suddenly hit with an overwhelming sense of lightheadedness and had to rest her head against the wall. She whimpered in pain as her eyes began to shut.

"H-Hey! Don't fall asleep, Ruby!" Weiss cried, shaking the younger girl lightly. "You can't fall asleep with your concussion!"

"But it hurts!" she complained quietly.

"Weiss is right, Ruby," Blake mumbled, coming over to pick up her red clad leader. "Stay with us Ruby," she ordered softly, lightly slapping the girl's cheek in an effort to keep her awake. "We need you here with us right now!"

Yang then walked over and grabbed her sister's shoulders. "Don't go to sleep, Rubes!" the blonde pleaded. "Please stay with me! Don't you dare leave me!"

"Y-Yang…" Ruby whispered.

Another explosion resounded through the cavern, shaking loose rubble from the ceiling as the others tensed again. However, this explosion was accented by a loud voice screaming, "MAKE WAY! WE GOT MORE INJURED COMING THROUGH!"

Everyone turned to see team JNPR, looking just as beat up as team RWBY was, dragging miners and a few soldiers through. A few more miners ran through the entrance as well followed by a blonde haired youth with a monkey tail…

"SUN?!" Blake shouted as she limped over to the monkey Faunus. Sun looked terrible. His chest was bloodied and bruised, and his arms had cuts all up and down them. Blood ran down his face and there was a small blonde girl with a blonde monkey tail swinging behind her in his arms.

Sun looked over to the disguised cat Faunus and gaped. "Blake?! What are you doing here?!" he asked/demanded.

"I'm on a mission! What are you doing here?!" she demanded back.

"Some jackass named Adam kidnapped my sister!" he shouted in response, motioning to the girl in his arms. "Said if I didn't come here he'd kill her!"

"A-Adam?!" Blake asked in shock.

"Who's that, Blake?" Weiss asked. But before she could answer, the sound of a soldier dying caught everyone's attention. They turned and saw an Atleasian soldier fall to a masked man wearing a black tux with red accents. Blake let out a choked gasp.

"Adam?!" she said, causing the man to whirl her way. He gave an eerie smile.

"Hello, my darling," he said in a dark, alluring voice. The other soldiers in the cave raced over to the entrance and leveled their guns at him. He chuckled and drew his sword, Wilt.

"This your new army, Blake?" he asked in amusement. "Not much of a trade-off if you ask me." Suddenly, he blurred forward and cut down a whole line of soldiers in a single stroke. "They die too easily!"

"You bastard!" Yang shouted and ran towards the bull Faunus. Blake tried to stop her but was too slow because of her limp.

"Yang no!" Blake shouted. Yang threw her arm back for a punch, and Adam smirked at the blonde. He waited until she was right in front of him and dodged her punch. He swung Wilt at her arm and it connected right above her elbow, easily sinking halfway through her unprotected skin. Yang couldn't even scream as he began to cut her arm off.

He would have succeeded too if it hadn't have been for a massive red and silver scythe blade came racing for his head.

Adam was forced to duck under the massive blade and let his sword slide out of the cut he made on Yang's arm. Yang screamed in pain as she fell to the ground, her arm barely attached to her body. She put a hand on the wound in an effort to stifle out the pain, as a shadow fell over her. Blearily, she looked up to see her sister standing wobbly above her.

"R-Ruby?" she mumbled through the pain.

"L-Leave her alone!" the silver eyed girl screamed and held her blade threateningly at the terrorist. Adam stared at her in amusement.

"Well, well, what do we have here-" He couldn't finish because Ruby rushed him with at speeds that surprised him and tackled him back through the cave's entrance, sending the two tumbling down a random corridor.

"Ruby!" Weiss, Blake, Yang, and team JNPR screamed. Without any preamble, the seven raced out of the cave in order to find and save their teammate and friend. Weiss turned back just long enough to say, "We'll handle this!" before vanishing.

Meanwhile, Ruby and Adam had tumbled into another room in the cave, one that was suspiciously lit by luminous rocks. Adam quickly jumped to his feet as Ruby tumbled a bit further and shakily got to her feet. The bull Faunus laughed a little. "Alright, girly, I'm slightly impressed!" he told her, gesturing to a cut she gave him on his cheek. "I'll humor you! Five minutes. Survive that long, and I might let you live long enough to see what I have planned for my darling Blake."

Ruby breathed in heavily as she swayed on her feet. "I-I won't l-let you h-hurt her!" she proclaimed. Adam smirked at her.

"Then prove it," he said, gesturing at her to bring it on.

Meanwhile, the others ended up taking a wrong turn and ended up in the middle of a major fight. The group became separated, ending up fighting for their lives while surround. Weiss was stuck fighting a mutated Ursa from Merlot's island and having to defend several injured miners.

"Stay back!" she shouted and tried to stab the Ursa. It did little and she was forced to jump away from the massive Grimm's clawed hand as it swung at her.

"Miss Schnee!" a soldier cried as he and his platoon raced into the corridor.

"Stay back!" she repeated, turning to them. A big mistake. Because as she turned back to the Ursa, she was too slow to defend against the Grimm's claw flying at her. Eyes wide, she tried to move away, but the claw made contact with her neck, opening it up in a spray of blood.

A choked gasp escaped her lips as she fell to the ground. The soldiers were stunned to silence for a moment before one screamed out, "MISS SCHNEE!" The mutated Grimm began walking slowly towards the downed Schnee heiress, who could only begin to crawl away from the massive beast with one hand over her open throat in a vain attempt to stop the bleeding. The soldiers raced forward and were able to draw the mutated Ursa's attention, but sadly, they couldn't get to Weiss because the Grimm barred their path.

No one noticed a glowing line of runes appear and start pulsating as Weiss passed them.

Yang cried out as another Grimm got a lucky swipe at her bad arm before she slammed her good arm into its face. She growled as she tried to turn around, but a Borbatusk slammed into her back, causing her to scream in surprise and pain as she fell to the ground. Tucking and rolling, she whirled and fired a round at the beast, knocking it back a few feet, only for a Beowolf to punch her in the face. She cried out again and stumbled away from the Grimm, only to cross a series of runes, which began to glow and pulse.

Blake ended up running into a room where White Fang and Atleasian soldiers were already locked in combat. "Blake! Wait up!" She turned to the shout and saw Sun running towards her.

"Sun?! What are you doing following me?!" she demanded. "You should be getting your sister to safety!"

"She's safe enough right now! We can't make it out of the mine right now, and you guys need as much help as you can get!" he shouted back.

"I don't need help!" she shouted again, just as another soldier cried out as he died. They turned towards the fighting, and Blake immediately took off flying towards the group.

"Blake wait!" Sun shouted, attempting to stop her. He cursed and was about to grab his weapon when he noticed something glowing in front of the group. It was a series of runes that stretched the whole way across the back of the room. They pulsated at a rather fast and disturbing pace. Sun felt uneasy. "Blake!" he shouted, and ran to try and find her.

Blake ran through the crowd, fighting any White Fang grunt she came across when she heard a loud voice scream out, "TRAITOR!" She whirled around in shock as the masked face of the Faunus known only as 'Lieutenant' meticulously stalked towards her, his chainsaw sword revved up and ready to slice her in half. She grabbed Gambol Shroud and prepared to protect herself.

Team JNPR was currently fighting off a large horde of Grimm and Merlot's mutants. Ren ducked under a mutated Beowolf's swipe as Nora slammed Maghild into its chest, sending it flying away. Turning on her heel, she whirled around and hit an Ursa in the head, sending it to the ground and leaving a crater. "Boom!" she shouted.

Pyrrha was fending off horde of mutated Creeps with Jaune as she was forced to dodge one trying to kick her. "There's too many!" she shouted to her team. Jaune cursed as he stabbed a Creep in the face and jumped away quickly to avoid the resulting explosion.

"Fall back!" he ordered. They didn't protest and quickly moved as a unit towards the back wall, never noticing a series of glowing runes appear and begin to pulsate at a rapid pace.

Back with Ruby and Adam, Adam was beginning to grow frustrated that he couldn't get a solid hit on a physically drained and disoriented girl! She ducked and weaved around his sword and bullets with a finesse that shouldn't have come from a person in her condition. She shouldn't have been able to cut him as much as she did, either. Of course, her large weapon played a role in that, he supposed.

Ruby herself was panting loudly as she tried to steady herself against Crescent Rose. Her clothes were ruined and barely covering her modesty, and her body was slowly turning from milky white to crimson red from all the cuts and slashes across her skin. Her vision had gotten progressively worse since the fight and now everything looked as if someone put the whole world on a spinning top. Black dots flickered across her vision as darkness attempted to envelop her.

Honestly, her dizziness and weakened state somehow proved to be an asset to her in the fight because of Adam's fast and precise strikes. She simply followed her body's demands and fell or stumbled before the strikes hit her. However, she wasn't lucky enough because of the number of cuts on her so far.

Finally, Adam tired of her insolence and raced forward and stabbed Ruby in the stomach. She hadn't reacted in time, and took the hit, making her let out a strangled gasp as she fell to the ground. Adam smiled as he grabbed the handle of his blade when something happened. A glowing set of runes flashed into existence as Ruby's body fell across them, and in a flash of light, she vanished!

As did half of Adam's arm.

Adam scream in pain as his life blood began spewing out of his new stump. Suddenly, several more flashes of light erupted from various caverns, illuminating the tunnels.

Weiss futilely tried to stall her bleeding neck when a white flash filled her vision and she knew no more.

Team JNPR were losing more ground as they vanished in a flash of white light, shielding their eye all the while.

Sun ran through the crowd and saw Blake fighting a large Faunus with a massive chainsaw sword. He prepared his weapon when a bright flash flashed around the whole group, and they vanished without a chance.

Yang was slammed into by an Ursa and sent to the ground, but before the Grimm could finish her off, a bright, harsh light flashed through the room, making the blonde vanish and disintegrating the Grimm in the room.

 **Middle Earth**

On a dark foot path, thunder clapped above head as lightning lit up the blackened sky as rain pelted a green cloaked man on horseback. He pulled his cloak closer to his person as a particularly bright flash of lightning turned night into day, followed by an extremely loud thunderclap.

His horse reared and neighed in fright. The man held on as best he could and tried to soothe his terrified mount. As the light faded, the man heard groaning. He frowned and tried to locate the source.

"What in Middle Earth…?" Aragorn, son of Arathorn, said aloud as he stared at the bodies of four kids, face down on the ground.

 **Kingdom of Hyrule**

Yang awoke to howling winds. She tried to open her eyes but soon found sand fly at her eyes, causing her to cry in annoyance and slam her eyes shut again. Pain flooded her system as sand ended up in her wound. She cried in pain and pushed herself to her feet. She tried to move, but it was difficult because for some reason, Ember Celica and her clothes kept trying to fall off her body. Were her weapons and clothes damaged that badly?

Meanwhile, at the gates leading to a massive fortress, two women stood guard. They were dark skinned with red hair and golden colored eyes and wore white baggy pants and white crop tops with long sleeves. One looked out to a massive sandstorm and frowned. "Aviel, is that what I think it is?" one asked the other.

The other, Aviel, looked out to the sandstorm and gasped when she saw a young child, only eight or nine years of age, stumbling out of the storm, sporting several injuries.

 **Skyrim**

Atop of a snowy mountain, a gothic style castle stood proudly amidst the white clouds and light snow fall. Within its high walls, a tall man in dark robes walked through a snow covered courtyard when he felt a sudden spike of energy as a bright light blinded him. As it died down, he looked around alertly, and was shocked to see a young girl face down in the snow.

"Miss! Are you alright?!" he called out and ran towards her. His concern turned to horror as he discovered her to be in the middle of a patch of red snow.

 **Ferelden**

Blake's eyes fluttered open with slight difficultly as she groaned in pain. She pushed herself off the ground and soon her heightened sense of hearing caught wind of arguing. She looked up to see Sun in front of her, getting up as well.

The arguing increased, and they both looked around and saw the Atleasian soldiers and White Fang grunts attempting to restart their fight. But what was even more concerning was that they were not in a cave anymore, but a dark forested area, and the sun was setting.

"W-Wait…Stop!" Blake shouted, and tried to stand. Sun was right behind her.

 **Daath**

As a bright light shined over a massive city centered around a large cathedral and a loud BANG resounded through the area, the civilians began cowering in shock while several men and women in armor tensed and readied for a fight. A young girl with pink hair surveyed her surroundings and noticed something falling from the sky. "Up there!" she shouted, causing a teen with spikey green hair to look up. Instantly, he jumped to a roof of a building and began jumping to larger structures, hoping to catch whatever was falling.

He closed in quickly and took a large jump and grabbed the object and landed on a steeple of the cathedral. His surprise came as he noticed he was holding a very critically wounded girl, a little older than himself, bridal style. A loud cawing caught his attention and he saw the pink haired girl riding a massive blue feathered bird, a giant scythe in its clutches.


	2. Huntress of Auldrant

**RWBY multicross**

 **An: So, here's the second chapter of Taken, but Returned! For those of you wondering, yes. There will be a timeskip, as this chapter shows. I plan on writing out their individual adventures at a later date.**

 **Just note that this chapter, as with the next four will be fillers mostly. Mainly because they're all backstory and just setting up what's going on with our protagonists at the current moment. As such, I hope they're good. After the fifth backstory chapter, things will pick up. But without further ado, enjoy the story!**

* * *

 _ **Two**_

 _The Huntress of Auldrant_

* * *

 **Daath**

The city of Daath had always been an imposing city. With its towering cathedral, its gothic architecture, and its unique and strategic position on the Padamiyan continent, Daath stood as a pinnacle of prominence and grandeur. Even after all the fall of the Order of Lorelei, the once major religion of Auldrant, that sentiment still stood.

The citizens of the cathedral city walked through bustling streets leisurely. Normal everyday civilians greeted one another jovially as they met each other. All in all, it was a rather nice day. But this was a very special day. And everyone knew it.

A young man of about twenty-six years of age walked down a busy street, a certain destination in mind. He was tall and possessed a youthful face and short light green hair, with two long strands flowing down his shoulders. He wore a set of black and white robes that resembled the ones he used to wear when he was the Fon Master of the Order of Lorelei. His name was Ion.

Beside him was a pink haired woman two years older than him wearing a pink trimmed black dress and matching boots and hat. Her arms held a large doll, and despite her youthful appearance and shorter stature, she gave off an air of maturity that let everyone know she was an adult. She was Arietta the Wild, Ion's personal guard and a member of the Seven God-Generals of Daath.

As they progressed down the busy streets, many greeted them with reverence. Ion clicked his teeth in irritation silently. He never did enjoy the mass attention he had received, even now that it was, admittedly, warranted. Arietta looked to him curiously.

"Are you ok, Ion?" she asked in a soft voice. He looked to her and smiled slightly.

"Just tired, my love," he mumbled to her and took her hand in his own. She smiled bashfully at him, a light blush gracing her angelic face.

"The stares are grating on your nerves again, aren't they?" she asked, whispering.

"Whatever gave you that idea?" he challenged.

"You always say you're tired when the stares become too much," she told him. "I'm not as good as Ruby at spotting your actions, but she has taught me much." Ion had to chuckle at that.

Ruby Rose. Never did he expect that such a radical, naïve, aggravating, crazy, dorky, impossible girl could ever exist. Let alone literally fall out of the sky. It had been thirteen years to the day that she had arrived in Auldrant, and so much had changed because of her. Not the least of which was his continued existence. Without her, after all, he would have died just as the Score had predicted.

It was one of the foremost reasons she was rather…disliked by the Order of Lorelei when they were in power. Not only that, but she also did not believe in the Score and found the whole institution… _funny._

" _Wait. You mean to tell me that the entire population of Auldrant follows this Score thing?"_ _she had asked him once._ " _And it tells you what will happen to you throughout the year, if bad things will happen to you or good things, and will even tell you what you're destined to do before you die?" When he had answered yes, she snorted. "Pffffffffffffft! Aahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhaha!" came her uproarish laughter. "That's so stupid! Hahahahahahahaha! What?! Doesn't it also tell you what eat and go to the bathroom, too?!"_

She had laughed even harder when some random Oracle knight had tried to deflect the question, signaling to her she was right.

Ion shook his head of the thoughts of the infuriating girl. "Of that, my love, I have no doubt," he mumbled as he leaned forward to kiss her. She blushed a bright, glowing red at the action. "The little weed is surprisingly good at reading people," he continued.

"You know she hates it when you call her that, Ion," Arietta reminded.

"And I hate her calling me a jerk," he said offhandedly. Arietta huffed.

"Ruby never means it," she defended. Upon meeting for the first time, Arietta and Ruby had gotten along swimmingly. Arietta had been Ruby's first friend she had made on Auldrant, and Ruby had been Arietta's first female friend who was close to her actual age. They had made the odd pair to be sure. Even more so when Ruby had become a Fon Master Guardian to Ion.

After Ion had saved Ruby, he requested she repay him for his 'kindness' by serving as another of his guardians. It had surprisingly worked out, as Arietta and Ruby worked extremely well together. So well, in fact, many in the Oracle Knights had come to know you never sparred with both at the same time.

It…never turned out well…for their opponents.

"She means it about as much as I mean calling her a weed," Ion said, not breaking his stride. Arietta shook her head, and continued on as well. They continued on down the street when they saw two individuals come out of an alleyway. Normally, this would not bother them, but the two were…companions of sorts.

The male looked remarkably similar to Ion himself, only he seemed to have a more innocent air about him instead of an air of authority, as well as lighter features. This lookalike wore green robes similar to Ion's. This was Florian, Ion's 'twin' brother.

The female was about Arietta's height with short black hair tied in pigtails and brown eyes. She wore a pink dress with white stockings and brown shoes. A lighter pink mantle with a symmetrical pattern on it was worn over her shoulders, and a patchwork teddy bear clung to her back. This was Anise Tatlin.

Ion looked at his twin with a blank expression. "Florian," he greeted cordially.

"Ion," Florian returned with a smile.

"Ion," she said quietly. She turned to Arietta and frowned a bit. "Gloomietta," she muttered.

"Lamese," Arietta replied back before turning to Florian. "Hello, Florian."

"Hey! I told you I'm not lame, Arietta!" Anise shouted.

"And I'm not gloomy, but you insist on calling me that, Anise," the pink haired general said, glaring at Anise.

"Arietta," Ion said dully, "no starting a fight." Arietta winced.

"Sorry, Ion," she mumbled. Ion nodded and turned to Anise.

"Same goes for you as well, Anise," he said sternly, making the woman wince as well.

"Alright, Ion," she said with a frown, annoyance lacing her tone. Ion sighed.

"Anise, I understand your feelings for…that other me, and the feelings he had for you are still there," Ion said. "But you need to understand: I'm not him. He was a completely different person. Florian is more like that Ion than I am. You saw that first hand, and I'm sure you don't need me to repeat it."

Anise slumped. "I know," she spoke sadly. It was hard to discern this Ion from the Ion she had served under as a Fon Master Guardian. Of course, she knew the Ion she remembered was only a Replica of the man that stood before her (as was the man at her side), and it wasn't hard to disconnect the two.

Where her Ion was kind and benevolent, the original Ion was selfish and hard hearted. While the Ion she traveled with was gentle and soft spoken, the original was cold and manipulative. Still, she couldn't understand how such a gentle and kind soul like the Ion she remembered originated from the Ion in front of her. Granted, Ion was far better now than he was back before the Order of Lorelei's fall, but he still wasn't close to the Ion she knew.

Florian put a hand on Anise's shoulder, squeezing reassuringly. Anise looked to him and smiled at him. Ion sighed again, silently telling them to hurry up.

"Let's just get going," Florian mumbled.

"What's the rush? You know they're probably still asleep," Anise said with a shake of her head.

"Perhaps, but I can at least wait in their living room and avoid all the staring," Ion grumbled and gestured to the civilians passing them. Arietta rolled her eyes. Apparently, the one thing Ion did pass onto his Replicas was the fact that stares directed at them made them uneasy, as Florian nodded at Ion's statement, fidgeting in place as he did so.

Anise sighed. "Yeah, alright, I get it," she grumbled. "Waking up that crazy huntress early might do her so good."

"Of that, Anise, we are in agreement," Arietta said. "Let's just get going. It's a big day for Indigo, after all. And I'm pretty sure Ruby would skin us if we weren't there for it."

* * *

 **Elsewhere**

At the edge of Daath near the forest that the cathedral city's walls enclosed, a modest two story log cabin sat. Upon simply looking at it, one would not immediately assume there was anything special about it. As it stood, however, it was home to two of Auldrant's greatest heroes.

Inside the wooden abode, in the darkened master bedroom, two people were asleep. A thick blanket was pulled over top of them, with the tops of the two's heads being seen. Contently, the two simply lied there, unaware that they were soon to be awakened.

The door of their room opened silently, just wide enough for a young boy to slip through. He was about five years of age, sporting spikey red-tipped black hair and bright silver eyes, and wore a dark blue shirt and pants. He giggled silently as he crept up to the bed at the far end of the room and crawled on top of it once he reached it.

Grinning widely, the boy began to jump up and down on the bed. "Mama! Dad! Get up! Wake up! Wake up!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, causing the occupants of the bed to groan out loud. "Hurry up! Hurry up! Hurry up! Today's the day! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" He giggled loudly as he jumped higher and higher.

The groaning continued until one occupant decided to end their torment. The body sat up, revealing a spikey green haired man of twenty-six with teal colored eyes. His youthful face was marred only by a cross shaped scar on his left cheek. This was Sync the Tempest, a member of the Seven God-Generals of Daath and Indigo's father. "Indigo," the man groaned wearily, "it's…" He narrowed his eyes at the clock at his bedside and frowned. "5:30, in the morning," he continued. He began to fall back onto his pillow. "Go back to bed…"

"But today's a super big day! I can't go back to sleep now!" Indigo retorted. He jumped higher. "Wake up! Come on, Dad! Wake up!" The man groaned as he plopped back down on his pillow.

A loud yawn drew both their attentions. "What's with all the racket?" asked the other occupant of the bed. Rising up, the figure was revealed to be a beautiful silver eyed woman of twenty-eight, unique black hair with red highlights slightly disheveled from sleeping. This was Ruby Rose, known also as 'Ruby the Huntress', member and leader of the Seven God-Generals of Daath and the mother of Indigo.

"Mama!" the green haired child shouted, hands high in the air as he jumped to her and hugged her tightly. The woman giggled at the gesture and hugged him back.

"Indigo, you little scamp! What have I told you about jumping on our bed?" she asked joyfully, a teasing grin gracing her gorgeous face.

"But Mooooommmaaaaa!" the boy whined. "Today's a very special day! And you both need to be awake for it!" Ruby simply laughed loudly.

"A special day, huh?" she mused in confusion, putting a hand on her chin. "What day would that be?" Indigo just grinned widely at her.

"Guess!" he challenged. Ruby smirked.

"Well, today's the day I showed up here in Daath. Can't be when we foiled Van's plans, and it's definitely not Asch and Natalia's wedding. That's a few months away," the silver eyed woman listed off. She rattled off a few more, irritating her son.

"Moommmaaaa..." he groaned. She laughed at him.

"Oh, you're just too easy to rile up, Indi!" she told him with a giggle. She hugged the boy close to her bosom. "Like I'd forget one of my favorite boys' birthdays!" Sync scoffed at that. Ruby forgetting Indigo's or even his own birthday was like him being nice to Luke. An absolutely ridiculous notion.

She released Indigo and ruffled his hair, irritating the boy further. "Alright, you little scamp," Ruby told him. "Go on and wait for us in the living room. Your dad and I need to get ready. 'Kay?" The boy brightened up and nodded. Ruby smiled and kissed his forehead, making him laugh as he bolted off the bed. He reached the door and slammed it shut. Sync sighed.

"He takes too much after you," he complained lightly, making Ruby chuckle.

"I'll take that as a compliment!" she told him.

"It was meant to be one," he replied. Ruby smiled at him.

"I know. But you deserve some credit. He looks a lot like you!"

"The horror." She laughed at him and kissed him.

"He has your dedication," she said softly. "And your iron will." She grinned teasingly at him. "Not to mention your hard-headedness."

Sync scoffed. "If that's the case, he inherited your stubbornness, as well," he told her, making his beautiful wife pout at him.

"Sync, I have told you numerous times, I am not stubborn!" she asserted firmly. "You simply can't see perfection as it happens!" Sync couldn't help but laugh at her pout. She looked far younger than she did normally when she pouted. It was strictly unfair for her to be that beautiful.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," he said dismissively, patting her on the head like a child and making her pout more. "Well, I think we need to get out of bed. Don't want Indigo barging in on us as we dress, do we?"

Ruby steamed at his change of the subject. However, she knew he had a point. She sighed, allowing him his win. For now. "No," she answered. She turned a glare to him. "But this discussion is not over, Mister." Sync smiled.

"I didn't expect anything less."

* * *

 **Rose family home, Living Room**

Indigo fidgeted excitedly on the couch as he waited some-what patiently for his parents to get ready for his birthday. He couldn't help it! He was turning five today! He was a big kid now! The black haired boy giggled loudly.

"I can't!" he shouted joyfully. "I can't keep sitting here! Maybe Momma left my birthday cake out for me last night!"

"Don't even think about it." Indigo winced as his father came into view, wearing his black and green with gold trim God-General uniform. "You know she never makes your birthday cake the day before," he reminded. Indigo pouted.

"And if I find you've been trying to locate your birthday presents, I'll have them returned," Sync told him. Indigo stiffened. He had been thinking that. How did his dad know?

"It's because you're thinking too loud," the green haired man chuckled. Indigo looked at his father, startled, before he frowned at the man.

"Daaaaadddd!" the boy whined. Sync chuckled and ruffled his son's hair.

"Don't worry, Indigo," he said. "You'll get your cake and presents. All you need to do is exercise some patience."

"But I don't wanna be patient!" Indigo whined.

"Good little boys who want their birthday cake must be patient, Indi," came Ruby's voice from a hallway. She walked into the living room wearing clothing similar to Sync's, only hers were black and red with silver trim. Her customary red cloak, damaged and tattered at the bottom, was worn proudly over her shoulders.

"Momma!" Indigo whined, making Ruby giggle.

"I'm just letting you know," she told him. "Are you a good boy?"

"Yeah! Yeah, I am!" Indigo shouted gleefully. Ruby giggled again and knelt down to hug him.

"Good boy," she told him, patting his head. Standing up, she asked, "Now, do you wanna help me bake your cake or should I ask your father to help me?"

Indigo's eyes widened in distress. "No! No! I'll help!" he told her loudly, making her giggle at him.

"Alright then. Come on you little scamp!" she tittered as she walked to the kitchen.

"MOMMA!" Indigo whined again and raced after her. Sync just chuckled at the interaction as he fell onto the couch. He leaned his head over the back of the couch and watched as his wife and son began gathering ingredients for Indigo's cake, with Indigo rapidly zipping around the kitchen while Ruby scolded him lightly for running in the house.

A small smile crossed his face, and, not for the first time, he wondered just how the hell he got so lucky. Him, a Replica whose only purpose was to die, had a life, a wife, and a _son_ no less!

Of course, as it always had, the answer came to him quickly: Ruby. She had shown him he didn't have to follow the path that had been laid out for him. She had allowed him to see he could live for himself, not live for lies he had been fed.

It was because of her, that he came to realize…that there was at least one person who cared for him…

 _***Flashback_

" _Only Replicas who can be useful are kept alive out of pity!" he said bitterly, glaring at the assembled group before him. The idiot Luke looked like he had swallowed a lemon while Ion looked on the verge of tears. He gritted his teeth at his fellow Replica. Resentment flowed through him as he began to lean backwards._

 _However, just as he felt gravity take over, he heard a distinct gunshot resound through the planet core. His eyes widened as a blur of red rose petals slammed into him and propelled him away from the edge and against the floor of the Tartarus._

" _WHAT IN GRIMM'S NAME ARE YOU THINKING?!" Ruby shouted at him. Sync stared up at her furious silver eyes, her face twisted into a snarl of rage, red armor gleaming in the lights of the core. He quickly recovered from his shock and sneered at her._

" _No! What do_ **you** _think you're doing?!" he demanded. "Can't you see I'm useless now?! I failed to stop you and these clowns, traitor! Van would most likely kill me anyway! I've outlived my purpose!"_

" _SHUT UP!" she screamed at him, punching him in the face. "FOR ONCE, CAN'T YOU ACTUALLY_ _ **ACT**_ _LIKE YOU HAVE A BRAIN?! YOU DON'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO MOHS OR VAN! THEY MAY HAVE CREATED YOU FOR THEIR OWN PURPOSES, ION MAY HAVE EVEN SANCTIONED THE ENTIRE THING, BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN YOU'RE TRASH! YOU HAVE A HEARTBEAT! A MIND! A SOUL! THAT MEANS YOU CAN MAKE YOUR_ _ **OWN**_ _DECISIONS! YOUR_ _ **OWN**_ _CHOICES!"_

" _DON'T BE SO NAÏVE!" Sync shouted back at her. "I'M NOT A REAL PERSON!"_

 _He couldn't finish his rant because Ruby punched him again. "QUIT SAYING STUPID THINGS LIKE THAT!"_

" _IT'S THE TRUTH!"_

" _THERE'S A FINE LINE BETWEEN TRUTHS AND HALF TRUTHS, SYNC! AND YOU'RE BELIEVING ONLY IN HALF TRUTHS!"_

" _SO WHAT IF I AM?! WHO WOULD TRULY CARE IF A LOWLY PIECE OF TRASH LIKE ME WERE TO DIE?!"_

" _ **I'D CARE, DAMMIT!"**_

 _Flashback end***_

It had been the first time since he met her that he ever heard her curse.

Suddenly, he felt something hit his face. Blinking, he looked up to see Ruby frowning at him. "What?" he asked.

"I've been trying to get your attention for three minutes," she told him. "Someone's at the door; could you please let them in and stop daydreaming?" Sync chuckled.

"As the huntress commands," he intoned solemnly, chuckling as Ruby's narrowed eyes sharpened and forced him to dodge a thrown wooden spoon. Figuring it best to hurry up with his task before she started throwing knives, he made his way for the front door. Opening it, he frowned deeply. "I knew I should've ignored Ruby and left the door shut," he mumbled.

"Geez, nice to see you too, Sync," Luke Fon Fabre grumbled sarcastically as he and his wife, Tear, walked into the house as Sync let them in. Luke was tall with blood red hair and green eyes. He wore a black shirt and pants under a white jacket with a stylized cross on the back; while Tear wore her typical Order of Lorelei uniform with her light brown hair flowing loose down her shoulders, blue eyes rolling at the exchange. Their daughter Lyra, a red haired blue eyed four year old wearing a red dress, scampered in behind them. Sync smirked at the little girl as she raced in; as he looked up, he noticed Luke and Tear had not arrived alone. "Asch," the Tempest said with a nod. "Natalia." Asch fon Fabre nodded in return.

"Sync," replied the Bloody, in his full God-General uniform and armor. Asch and Luke were near identical (obvious since Luke was Asch's Replica), with the only difference was their attire and the fact Asch had long hair while Luke's was cut short. At Asch's arm was the beautiful, and soon to be Queen of Kimlasca, Natalia Luzu Kimlasca Lanvaldear, wearing a thick traveling coat over her normal blue and white blouse, pants and boots.

"A pleasure, Sync," Natalia greeted with a smile. "I assume Ruby's up as well?" Sync snorted.

"Indigo woke us both up," he admitted. "She's making his cake right now." Natalia laughed joyfully.

"Naturally!" she said. "I'm glad she's keeping her skills up! I'll not have my wedding ruined because she couldn't bake a cake!"

"Are you insulting my cake making skills, Nat?!" Ruby's shouted from the kitchen. Natalia laughed loudly again.

"Never, Ruby! Never!" she shouted back as she walked into the house, leaving Sync and Asch at the door. The red headed noble turned to Sync and frowned.

"What would it take for you to kill me now?" he asked in a quiet voice, sounding distressed.

"Nothing, since Ruby would kill _me_ if I got blood across the carpet," the green haired Replica responded, equally quiet.

"You're whipped."

"Can you say you're not?"

"Point," Asch groaned. "Her wedding planning is starting to kill me."

"I'm sure," Sync winced in sympathy. Natalia had planned his and Ruby's wedding, against the will of them both. Sync didn't care for one, and Ruby wanted a simple, small one. What they got was anything but.

"Last night I had to talk her down from getting nearly twenty white horses for the ceremony," Asch mumbled as he walked in. "What the hell would we do with horses, anyway? Let alone twenty."

Sync closed the door. "Be grateful," he said. "Ruby had to nearly tear Natalia's hair out just to get her to agree to no armed guard for our wedding."

"I think that's when Natalia's love of wedding planning started," Luke chuckled, coming up to the other two. They looked to him, and he shrugged. "They began talking about the wedding again, and I chose to come talk to you guys and not be subjected to that stuff again." The other two males nodded in acceptance.

"So…" Asch said. "What now?"

"How about some friendly spars out back?" Luke suggested.

Sync grunted. "Well, what do you know? You do have a brain under that red hair," he snarked, getting an indignant cry from Luke. "It will be a while before the cake's done, and Ruby's not going to let anything happen until all the guests are here. Might as well do something while we wait."

At the very instance, a knocking interrupted them. Sync looked to the door and opened it again. He sighed. "Ion," he mumbled.

"Sync," the man greeted back as he walked in. Arietta walked in soon afterwards. Sync nodded to her with a smile.

"Hello, Arietta," he said.

"Hello, Sync, it's nice to see you again," Arietta smiled. She hugged him and made her way in inside as Ion went to lean against a support beam. Florian and Anise walked in after Arietta. Sync nodded to them.

"Florian," Sync nodded to his fellow Replica. "Anise," he greeted.

"Hello, Sync. Have a good night's rest?" Florian asked kindly. Anise gave off a hearty "Hello!" before walking inside to be with the other women.

"Yeah, up until Indigo woke me up," he grumbled. Florian smiled.

"He has a lot of energy, doesn't he?" the kinder of three 'brothers' asked. Sync just grumbled incoherently.

"Let's just go outside," Asch grumbled. "Before Natalia drags us all into their wedding conversation."

"Agreed," Ion said with a nod. With that, the five males walked out of the house, closing the door silently behind them.

* * *

 **With the women**

"…but booking the entertainment is harder than I have been expecting. Nothing I come up with seems to be good enough…"

"Natalia," Anise groaned.

"Is the entertainment really necessary?" Arietta asked.

"Yes, it's necessary!" the queen-to-be exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "My guests need to be entertained while at my reception! I shall not have them simply indulge in idle chit-chat without some-"

"Some sort of background noise?" Ruby asked.

"Yes. Without some sort of background noi-" Natalia stalled, and turned to glare at a smirking Ruby. "That's not what I was going to say!" Ruby snickered.

"It may as well be," the silver eyed woman said as she checked on her son's cake. "However you try and make it sound, that's what you meant."

Natalia groaned. "You're impossible!" she bemoaned.

"She's always been impossible, Natalia," Anise commented from her positon at the kitchen's island. Lyra ran by her, keeping away from a laughing Indigo.

"Lyra, no running in the house!" Tear admonished her daughter.

"That goes double for you, Indigo. I've warned you already," Ruby called out, making the two kids whine. Ruby turned to Anise and glared. "And what do you mean ' _I've always been impossible?_ '" she asked, hands on her hips.

"Uh…do you want a _list_ , Rose?" Anise asked slowly.

"We don't mean it to be mean, Ruby," Arietta said with a soft smile. "But you've always been impossible. Ion says it all the time." The Rose family matriarch huffed.

"Ion's a jerk. Of course he says stupid things like that!" she snorted and crossed her arms.

"Then why'd you marry his Replica if he's such a jerk?" Tear asked with a raised eyebrow. Ruby sent an unimpressed stare at the woman, silently saying 'Are you really going there, all things considered?' Tear grimaced. "Right. Stupid question. Forget I said anything," she mumbled, red faced.

"Back on the wedding topic," Arietta said, deciding to change the subject, "Have you and Asch decided on a venue yet, Natalia?"

"NO!" the princess shouted indignantly, throwing her hands up in the air. "He's being so difficult!"

"Are you sure it's just him?" Ruby asked grumpily. "You tend to get crazy with weddings, Nat."

Natalia looked annoyed. "What do you mean crazy?!"

"I told you when I, finally, agreed to have you plan my wedding," Ruby explained, "I wanted it to be simple. A small, modest occasion for our close friends in a nice little area just outside of my house here." Ruby glared at the blonde woman. "So imagine my surprise when my guest list has over seven hundred people listed and being held inside the Malkuth Royal Gardens!"

"You're _still_ on that?!" Natalia asked incredulously. "I didn't see you complaining as you walked down the aisle!"

"That's because Jade was holding my arm quite tightly!" Ruby growled. "Then he had Sync hold me in place!"

"Oh, come now, Ruby," Tear said with a teasing smile. "You loved it. We all know you did! Didn't you tell Arietta as much during the reception?"

"TEAR!" Ruby cried, betrayal written all over her face. The others began snickering in amusement. Natalia huffed in satisfaction.

"I rest my case," she said smugly. Ruby growled at her, but as she was about to say something, there was a knock on the door. Ruby sighed and walked away from her giggling friends. She made it to the door and opened it wide. She smiled.

"Jade. Guy, welcome!" Ruby said happily.

"Hello, Ruby," Jade Curtiss greeted, in his Malkuth military formal wear as always. "It's nice to spend time with friends now that I have some time off again."

"You have nearly five months of vacation time saved up, Jade," Ruby deadpanned. Jade rolled his eyes as he walked in.

"I have no idea what you are implying, my dear," he replied easily. Guy Cecil shook his head and smiled at Ruby.

"Hey, Ruby," he said with a wave. His typical white shirt, yellow vest, and dark pants were as immaculate as always as he walked in. "Where's Luke and the other guys?"

"Probably outside, sparring," Ruby said with an eye roll. "We're talking about the wedding, and I think they didn't want to hear any more about it."

"Why haven't you joined them?" he asked, knowing Ruby's irritation with Natalia's wedding planning.

"Indi's cake's not done yet," she said simply, making Guy chuckle.

"Ah," Guy nodded easily. "The others are on their way, by the way." Ruby nodded.

"Good. Indi's cake should be done soon, so could be so kind as to drag that silly husband of mine, my dear brothers-in-law, Luke, and Asch back here, Guy?" Ruby asked.

Guy laughed. "Sure thing, Ruby! Be right back!" He handed her a present. "Hold this for me, please?" She nodded, and the blonde swordsman took off. Ruby sighed as she closed the door and walked back into the living room.

Ruby thought about how much her life had changed. Thirteen years ago, she had been a young huntress-in-training with minimal experience; now, she was a war veteran, a woman who led an elite group of warriors, the wife to the man who had become her closest friend on Auldrant, and of course the mother to a wonderful son. She had always thought that her life could never get better when she was accepted into Beacon. That with her training to achieve her dream and being with her team was the best thing in the world. That with her sister and two other girls she had come to see as honorary sisters, nothing could stop them.

Then the incident at the Schnee mine happened.

They had learned just how hard the rest of the world could hit them. Ruby felt the memory of the mine press against her like a weight, depressing her. She hated remembering that day. She had so many unanswered questions about that day. Was her team alright? Was JNPR safe? Did Glynda make it? Was team CVFY ok? How did she end up away from Remnant and on Auldrant?

She shook her head, trying to shake off the melancholy thoughts and looking to a table next to a window. On the plain stand were three objects. On one side was a picture of her and her team, fold marks evident across the colored painting. Ruby, eyes closed and holding a peace sign up with both hands. Weiss, looking irritated with a certain blonde in the picture. Blake, laughing. Yang, with her arms wrapped around the three of them and her chin resting on top of Ruby's head. The second object was a small, pocket-sized ragged book that belonged to her mother; a prized possession of the silver eyed woman that never left her side. According to her father, Taiyang Xiao Long, it was an artifact from an almost forgotten part of Remnant's past. The black leather was stained and peeling, and the words 'Holy Bible' were barely legible; but the pages inside, interestingly enough, were only slightly yellow with age. The third was another picture; of her and Sync in a hospital, her newborn son Indigo resting in her arms.

Like usual, the sight of her prized possessions helped ease the weight to the point she could ignore it. She smiled as she placed the present on the pile with the others. At that moment, Guy and the others came in, followed by a small group of children, Indigo's friends. Ruby smiled again as the kids surrounded her son while the children's parents walked into the living room and greeted her.

While she wished she could see her team again; her father; her uncle; she wouldn't trade the life she had for anything. For once, life couldn't have been better for Ruby Rose.

* * *

 _ **Ruby: Hey guys! Ruby Rose here for the preview of the next chapter of Taken, but Returned!**_

[Scene opens up with a large city built within a large white stone hillside, then panning to bustling streets.]

 _ **Ruby: From the future-y world of Auldrant, the story goes to the fantasy world of Middle Earth…Wow, what a change of scenery.**_

[Screen pans to a shot of King Arathorn walking alongside his most trusted advisors as he makes his way to small construction zone, with Jaune Arc and Lie Ren staring away from him as they supervised the endeavor.]

 _ **Ruby: But still, you get to see a post war scene of the White City and…Holy Crap! Is that Jaune and Ren?!**_ [Both men turn to the camera.] _**Whoa! The years have certainly been kind to them! I didn't think Ren could grow a beard!**_

 _ **Ruby: Next time: The Juniper of Gondor!**_

[Screen pans to scene of Nora and Pyrrha and their children, and showing Pyrrha was pregnant.]

 _ **Ruby: Daww! Their kids look sooo cute..! Hey! What the heck, Pyrrha?!**_


	3. Juniper of Gondor

**Taken, but Returned**

 **An: Sorry bout the wait. Hope this is worth it.**

 **Just so you know, I didn't do much explanations for the four because I felt it wasn't really needed. At least, not at this moment.**

* * *

 _ **Three**_

 _The Juniper of Gondor_

* * *

 **Minas Tirith, capital of the Kingdom of Gondor**

"Watch that pillar! We don't want it that thing falling down on the lower levels!" a tall, blond haired main in white armor shouted to a small group of men on a ledge. The blonde's hair was long and tied back in a ponytail, and his face was rugged, with the slightest hint of blond stubble running across his chin. A simple, two-edged straight sword in a white sheath and a small, wooden staff topped with a clear jewel hung casually at his sides. The man was none other than Jaune Arc, general of the armies of Gondor.

He sighed in exhaustion and wiped his brow. "No rest for the weary," he mumbled. He looked over at the construction area and couldn't help but smile tiredly. It had taken a long time. But Minas Tirith was finally looking like it should. 6 years was a long time for repairs, but the White City was a large city. Not to mention it was made straight into the bedrock.

Yet, after the constant setbacks, and numerous accidents, the repairs were nearly done. It felt good to finally finish up such a long-term project like this. Jaune was pleased with it all.

"Good job, guys!" he called out to the men. "Keep it up! I'm going to check on the others!" The men nodded and voiced their understanding. Jaune nodded and walked through the construction site and walked towards the secondary site.

As the young general walked through the construction site, Jaune found his mind drifting, wondering if Pyrrha and Nora were doing alright by themselves with the kids. Nora's and Ren's daughter was already a troublemaker on her own, but add his eldest son into the mix, it was a recipe of disaster. And then his twin daughters were hell on wheels. Jaune chuckled at the memories as he rounded a corner, underneath some scaffoldings.

"Heads up!" someone shouted as several large beams broke off from the scaffolding, falling towards an unsuspecting Jaune. Suddenly, his arm flashed up before falling back down within the blink of an eye. The beams fell asunder on either side of the blonde general. The workers gaped in awe at the site.

"General Arc! Are you…okay?" one of the workers asked uncertainly. Jaune looked up to the worker and smiled.

"Yes. Nothing I can't handle," he answered. "Might I suggest some stronger rigging?"

"Of course, sir!" one of the men shouted back, before he went and barked some orders. Jaune simply took a moment to examine his handiwork. He couldn't help but feel a twinge of pride at how far he had come in comparison to thirteen years ago. Ever since his team and himself were found on that lonely road by Aragorn, they had done nothing but improve, hoping for a way home.

However, their improvement only skyrocketed when they became involved with the war for Middle Earth. The blonde knight could remember the very day it happened. The day the Fellowship was formed…

 _**Flashback**_

 _Jaune fidgeted as Frodo Baggins placed the One Ring in the center of the dais. Like the other times since he met the Hobbit, whenever the Ring was out in the open, he could hear it whispering to him._

 _Whispers of power. Threats of death. Whispers of a way home. Angered growls at being ignored. Whispers promising a way to save Pyrrha._

 _Jaune shivered. Ever since he accidently touched the cursed ring, he had been plagued with horrible nightmares of Pyrrha dying. It terrified him at just how many ways he had seen it. Mauled by Grimm. Killed by a glowing eyed woman in a red dress. Beheaded by a red eyed woman who looked like Yang…_

" _MakeitstopmakeitstopmakeitstopmakeitstopmakeitstopRenpleasemakeitstop!" Nora babbled next to the magenta eyed hunter, holding her hands over her ears and rocking back and forth trying to drown out the evil whispers of the Ring. Ren, himself, was tense. His whole face and body were scrunched up, as if he smelt something horribly rancid, and sweat stained his clothes. His hands clenched the rests of his chair tightly, the wood cracking under his superior strength as sweat coated his face._

 _Pyrrha was worse than all of them. Her face was pale, pasty. Her clammy hands were clutching Milo tightly. Shivers racked her body as she, rather unsuccessfully, tried to steady her breathing. Jaune's heart froze at the sight._

"… _give Gondor the weapon of the enemy! Let us use it against him!" the dark-haired human by the name of Boromir asked the council._

" _You cannot wield it! None of us can!" Aragorn told the warrior. Boromir looked his way. "The One Ring answers to Sauron alone. It has no other master!"_

" _Not for lack of trying, it seems," Ren muttered darkly, though only Elrond heard him._

" _And what would a Ranger know of this matter?!" the son of the Steward of Gondor sneered, making his way towards the dark-haired Ranger._

 _A blond elf, a friend of Aragorn named Legolas, rose in indignation. "This is no mere Ranger!" he said boldly. Boromir turned to him in question. "He is Aragorn, son of Arathorn. You owe him your allegiance."_

 _Boromir looked shocked, as did many others around them. He looked to the Ranger and asked in a disbelieving tone, "This…is Isildur's heir?" Aragorn looked as calm as ever._

" _And rightful heir to the throne of Gondor!" Legolas said._

" **Stand down, Legolas,** _" Aragorn said in the elven language. Legolas looked ready to protest but decided to relent._

 _Boromir scoffed. "Gondor has no king!" he proclaimed. He looked at Aragorn and said softly, "Gondor needs no king!" With that, the representative of Gondor sat down. Legolas followed suit._

" _Aragorn is right," Gandalf the Grey said. "We cannot use it!"_

" _You have only one choice," Elrond continued. "The Ring must be destroyed."_

" _Oh, thank God!" Nora cried, jumping up from her earlier position. "I don't know how much more I can take of this crummy ring's voice in my head!"_

" _Are you mad, woman?" Boromir asked in disdain, looking deflated at hearing Elrond's admission while Frodo looked at the ring with an unreadable expression._

" _Aragorn's companions are more entuned with spiritual matters, Boromir, son of Denethor," Elrond explained. "They have learned at a young age to wield their very souls as weapons. As such, the malevolent power of the Ring attacks their souls more than all of us at the current moment." Having said this, Elrond walked over to the four and muttered under his breath. Instantly, Pyrrha began to look better. Her breathing calmed; her skin regained its healthy tanned color. Ren's face relaxed as his hands unclenched; Nora calmed down (as much as Nora could at any rate). Jaune sighed in relief as the whispers died down._

" _Thank you," Jaune said gratefully._

" _It was not an issue, Jaune Arc," Elrond said. Turning back to the group, he continued, "As I said, the Ring is too dangerous to keep anywhere. Sauron's forces will not stop in their attempts to retrieve it. It must be destroyed."_

 _Jaune looked over to Pyrrha as Elrond spoke. "Are you ok?" he asked quietly. She looked to him and gave a shaky smile._

" _I will be," she promised. Jaune reached out to squeeze her hand. She returned it gratefully._

" _Well, what are we waiting for?!" a redheaded dwarf with a wild beard shouted, grabbing his axe. He swung his axe at the Ring, but just as it connected, it broke into several pieces. Team JNPR and Frodo flinched violently as they received a vision of a giant fiery eye glaring at them. Gandalf and Aragorn looked to the hobbit and human team, respectively, in concern. Frodo ignored Gandalf as Ren waved off Aragorn. The Black Speech of Mordor whispered around them._

" _The Ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli, son of Gl_ _ὁ_ _in, by any craft we here possess," Elrond explained. The dwarf looked shocked that his axe failed. "The Ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom." Frodo looked to the deceptively innocent ring on the dais with a frenzied look. "Only there, can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into Mordor and cast_ back _into the fiery chasm from whence it came!" He looked around at the assembled group. "One of you, must do this."_

 _The assembled group was stunned to silence. Boromir, however, broke the silence. "One does not simply walk into Mordor!" the eldest son of Denethor spoke._

" _Sure you can!" Nora said with her usual exuberance, jumping out of her seat. "You just walk up to the door; kick it down and barge right in!" she finished whilst acting out her plan._

" _You do not understand!" Boromir told her. "There is evil there, that does not sleep. Its Black Gates are guarded by more than just Orcs." Gimli looked uneasy. Boromir made a motion of making a circle with his hand. "And the Great Eye, is ever watchful." Jaune and Frodo caught each other's eyes and shared a look of apprehension._

" _Oh…" Nora mumbled as she sat back down, looking chastised._

"' _Tis a barren wasteland, riddled with fire, ash, and dust! The very air you breathe is a poisonous fume. Not with ten thousand men can you do this. It is folly!"_

" _Have you heard nothing Lord Elrond said?!" came the disbelieving tone of Legolas, who stood abruptly. "The Ring must be destroyed!"_

" _And I suppose you think you'll be the one to do it?!" Gimli shouted, glaring at the blond elf._

" _And if we fail, what then?!" Boromir demanded, standing as well. "What happens when Sauron takes back what is his?!" Aragorn sighed wearily as Gimli stood and faced Legolas._

" _I will be dead before I see the Ring in the hands of an elf!" Gimli shouted in indignation. This caused everyone to jump up and argue over the fate of the Ring. "NEVER TRUST AN ELF!" Gimli roared._

" _Well, this is great!" Jaune muttered._

" _So much adversity between their individual species," Pyrrha mumbled. "This was bound to happen."_

" _Too many opinions, and not enough action," Ren observed._

" _So, we're pretty much screwed, huh?" Nora asked._

" _Hopefully not," Jaune answered. "If all else fails, we'll take it." The three looked at him like he was crazy._

" _Jaune, forgive me for asking, but, ARE YOU INSANE?!" Nora shouted. "We all barely touched that thing, and its torturing us to our limits! Can you honestly say you could_ carry _it all the way to this Mordor place and NOT go evil?!"_

" _I don't know," Jaune admitted. "But I'm willing to try."_

" _That might be your undoing, Jaune," Pyrrha cautioned, sounding worried. Jaune was about to reply when Ren interrupted._

" _Is it just me, or has the Black Speech started getting louder?" he asked, turning their attention to the Ring. Indeed, the cursed language of Mordor was steadily increasing in volume. Jaune flinched as the Ring's mutterings grew louder and louder and…_

" _I will take it!" came over the shouting, making JNPR look over to Frodo. "I will take it!" Gandalf looked pained as he slowly turned to Frodo. The arguing died slowly. "I will take the Ring to Mordor!" he proclaimed loudly as the argument was silenced. JNPR looked at him in shock._

" _Although," the hobbit said uncertainly, "I do not know the way." Gandalf looked resigned as he walked over to Frodo._

" _I will help you bear this burden, Frodo Baggins," he said, moving behind the hobbit and placing his hands on Frodo's shoulders. "So long as it is yours to bear."_

 _Immediately, Aragorn stood. Everyone turned their attention to him. "By my life or death, I can protect you, I will," he proclaimed, to Jaune's shock. The exile turned Ranger walked over to Frodo and took a knee. "You have my sword." Gandalf and Elrond exchanged a look, like they knew this would happen. Aragorn stood and moved to stand next to Gandalf._

" _And you have my bow!" Legolas said, coming to stand next to them._

" _And my axe!" Gimli boomed, moving to stand next to Legolas. The two exchanged a look before looking away._

 _Jaune got over his shock and stood as well and walked over to Frodo. "And you will have my shield!" he told the hobbit, to his team's shock. However, it faded quickly, and Pyrrha smiled softly._

" _As well as my spear!" she called out, standing and moving next to Jaune. Ren was quick to follow her example._

" _And my guns are yours to command!" he said._

 _Nora grinned and followed his example. "As is my hammer!" she shouted and unfurled Maghild into its hammer configuration. "Let's go!" They all grinned at each other as Boromir walked up to them. Jaune recognized the look on his face._

 _It was the 'This plan is so ridiculously stupid…that it just might work' face._

" _You carry the fate of us all, little one," he said. He looked around and said, "If this is indeed the will of the council, then Gondor will see it done!"_

" _Hah!" Everyone blinked in shock as Samwise Gamgee came running from around a bush to stand next to Frodo. "Mr. Frodo is not going anywhere without me!" the hobbit told the group and crossed his arms._

" _No indeed, even when HE is called to a secret council and you are not!" Elrond said with some amusement. A loud ruckus caught everyone's attention again, as the hobbits Merry and Pippin came running out from their hiding places to stand next to Frodo. Elrond looked around in bewilderment as they ran up. Pyrrha couldn't help but laugh. Their loyalty to their friend was admirable._

" _Anyway, you need people of intelligence on this…quest…thing!" Pippin said, making Gandalf roll his eyes in amusement._

" _Well, that rules you out, Pip!" Merry muttered to him._

" _Thirteen companions," Elrond mumbled. To the council he proclaimed, "Very well! You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring!" Jaune couldn't help but smile at that, feeling that he was apart of something greater. Like he always dreamed of being. Of being a great hero like his family before him…_

" _Right!" Pippin said with a nod. "Where are we going?"_

" _Oh, dear Lord, we're doomed!" Nora cried at that._

 _Flashback End***_

Jaune chuckled at the memory as he finally made it to his destination. He looked around and saw a tall man wearing green clothing under silver armor. Long black hair was tied back in a ponytail, and slightly pointed ears. Jaune smiled.

"Yo, Ren! How's it going?!" Jaune called out, making the man turn around, revealing magenta eyes, a single magenta strand of hair falling across his face, and a dark beard. This was Lie Ren, leader of Gondor's newest military detachment, the Aura Knights.

Ren nodded with a small smile. "Hello, Jaune," he said nodding. Jaune walked up and stopped next to his friend. "It's been going well," Ren continued, looking back to the construction. "This section of the wall will be complete within the week."

"Excellent!" Jaune couldn't help but chuckle. Ren looked at him in confusion.

"Something on your mind, Jaune?" Ren asked. Jaune smiled at him.

"Three more days, and it will have been thirteen years," the young general said, making Ren chuckle as well.

"Time sure flies, doesn't it?" Ren asked.

"Yeah," Jaune nodded. "So much has happened since then…"

"Including you marrying the love of your life?" Ren teased.

"And you admitting you actually 'like, liked' Nora," Jaune teased back, blushing lightly as Ren's cheeks tinged pink slightly.

"It's been a long, wild ride," Ren commented.

"And it's just getting started," Jaune replied. "We have so much to do still."

"Well, we have all the time in the world," Ren told him. Jaune nodded.

They were about to turn around and get back to work, when they noticed a group coming up behind them. They turned and saw it was Aragorn, King of Gondor, and several of his advisors. Jaune waved them over. "They're early," he commented.

"It can't be helped," Ren commented. "We're so close to completing the renovations, after all." Jaune nodded in agreement as Aragorn and his entourage drew closer.

"Jaune, Ren," Aragorn greeted with a smile. "How is everything? Still running smoothly, I hope?"

"Yep," Jaune said with a nod. "I'd say a few more days, and we're done, Aragorn."

"That's 'Your Majesty,' to you, General," Centhor, one of Aragorn's older advisors, sneered at the young general.

"It's alright, Centhor," Aragorn placated. "They are friends."

"Even still, it's more customary to refer you to your title, your Majesty," Ren commented, giving Jaune a look.

"Hmph," Centhor huffed. "At least this one has manners." Another of Aragorn's advisors, Benefor, looked amused at the man.

"I take it you've been here a while?" Aragorn asked. Jaune nodded slightly.

"We've been around since four this morning," Jaune answered. Aragorn shook his head.

"You two are amazing, Jaune, Ren," Aragorn said. "But you two work far too much. Pyrrha and Nora must be going mad taking care of your children alone." Jaune and Ren looked at each other and grimaced. Aragorn shook his head. "Go to them," he told them. That made both men blinked.

"But, Aragorn, we-" Jaune tried to reason, but Aragorn cut him off.

"Go, I'll handle it form here," Aragorn told them.

"Are you sure?" Ren asked. "We can stay-"

"The king has spoken Sir Ren," Benethor spoke. He walked up to Ren and placed a hand on the younger man's shoulder. "I'm sure Nora would apricate some help. Your daughter is a little hellion on her own." Ren chuckled at that.

"Well, I cannot deny that," he admitted. Aragorn just motioned behind him with his head.

"Go," he told them. Jaune sighed.

"Well, if you insist," Jaune breathed. ' _At least I can be with Pyrrha,'_ he reasoned in his head, smiling lightly.

* * *

 **Elsewhere**

On the other side of the city, near the palace, there was a massive mansion. Inside the mansion's high walls, two kids of eight years of age were training loudly. One was a boy with blonde hair and green eyes while the other was a girl with short black hair with turquoise eyes and slightly pointy ears. They both loose fitting sleeved shirts and pants as they swung a spear and hammer at each other, respectively.

The blonde-haired boy poised for a stab, but the girl jumped up and swung her hammer down. The blonde spun out of the way and grabbed the girl's leg. She gasped in surprise and started screaming as he pulled her down. She landed hard.

"Owwww!" she whined. "Aunty Pyrrha! Your son pulled a cheap move!"

"Yeah right! You always say that Tsubaki!" the blonde accused.

"No, I don't!"

"Yes, you do!"

"Enough," came a light chuckle from behind them. They turned to see a beautiful redhead with green eyes and wearing a long flowing auburn dress sitting at a stone table on a cushioned seat. Her stomach showed she was several months pregnant, and she had a warm smile. This was Pyrrha Arc, Jaune's wife, partner, and the youngest advisor to King Aragorn. "Tsubaki, the move was legal in any competition, but did you have to slam her so roughly, Noir?"

"It was a reflex!" the newly dubbed Noir defended. "Besides, elf girl can take it!"

"Drag-it, Noi!" Tsubaki shouted. "I've constantly and constantly told you! Just because my dad has elf blood in him because of a life-saving blood transfusion, doesn't make me an elf! It's like you being a dwarf because of your weird fascination with their smith skills!"

"Oh, it's on now, Tsu-Tsu!" Noir growled, grabbing his spear.

"Alright, ENOUGH!" a loud shout came from behind Pyrrha. Both kids flinched as a beautiful orange haired woman with turquoise eyes in flowing robes walked up. This was Nora Ren, Lie Ren's wife and co-commander of the Aura Knights.

"B-But Momma!" Tsubaki protested, throwing her hands up. "Noir's being a jerk! As usual!"

"And your daughter's being a whiner, as usual, Aunt Nora!" Noir protested as well.

"It's barely noon and you two are already getting on each other's nerves!" Nora groaned as she walked over to sit next to Pyrrha. She plopped down gently, as not to disturb her friend, and said, "Take a break and chill before you start training with me!" Both kids paled.

"N-No need for that, Momma! Really!" Tsubaki stuttered, swinging her hands in front of her.

"Y-Yeah! No need to go that far! It was just a little miss understanding!" Noir continued.

Both children bowed. "We're sorry!" they shouted before running off. Pyrrha laughed lightly.

"For some reason, when I look at them, I see you and Ren, more than I see Jaune and myself," Pyrrha commented to Nora.

"Really? All I see is that funny romantic tension between them like you and Jaune-Jaune had!" Nora teased, making Pyrrha blush red.

"I wouldn't call it funny," Pyrrha mumbled, and looked away.

"I would!" Nora laughed.

"It still wasn't as funny as catching you and Ren making out then making us believe 'you both slipped,'" Pyrrha said slyly, making Nora blush just as bright as her.

"We did! All the time!" Nora shouted. Pyrrha giggled.

"Then why don't I believe you?" Pyrrha asked, making Nora scream out in embarrassment. Pyrrha giggled again, before she looked around and frowned. "Nora. Where are Argent and Rouge? Weren't you keeping them busy with some rudimentary training?"

Nora recovered quickly and sobered up. "They're inside getting you something to eat! Because you know, you have some weird tastes!"

"I do not!" the soon to be mother of four denied hotly.

"Yeah! You do!" she teased, but before she could tease her friend further, there was a ruckus inside.

"Papa!"

"Papa! You're back!"

"Hehehehe…Hey girls! What are you two doing in here?" came a very familiar voice. Nora and Pyrrha perked up a bit.

"Jaune…?" Pyrrha mouthed.

Ren walked out of the manor and smiled at the two. "Hello, Nora, Pyrrha. We're back," he explained.

"Ren!" Nora cried, racing towards her husband. She tackled him and hugged him tightly, but he held himself up despite her superior strength. "You're back! What's up?! Has something happened?!"

"No, nothing like that," Ren explained. "King Aragorn arrived and told us he'd finish supervising the construction for the rest of the day." He placed her back down and continued, "Told us to come help you two with the kids."

Pyrrha shook her head. "That does sound like, his Majesty," she mumbled.

"He wouldn't take no for an answer, so we had no choice but to come home!" Jaune said as he walked out of the manor, a tray of food in his hands, with two little girls of about five running circles around him. One girl had long, bright red hair and wore a yellow dress and the other had short, blonde hair and wore a red dress. Jaune made it to Pyrrha and smiled down at his wife. "Hey, Pyrrha."

"Hey, Jaune," Pyrrha smiled warmly. He placed the tray down on the table in front of her: chocolate covered Jalapeño peppers and lemonade with sauerkraut juice.

"Again, you have the weirdest tastes, Pyrrha!" Nora teased. Pyrrha frowned at the orange haired woman.

"There's nothing wrong with my tastes, Nora!" Pyrrha said hotly. "I seem to recall you ate pineapple, pecan, and meat tartar with fish sauce when you were pregnant with Tsubaki."

"That's still better than that monstrosity in front of you!" Nora protested, pointing at the tray in front of Pyrrha.

"Mamma! Momma!" Argent cried gleefully. Pyrrha looked down at her daughters and smiled. "Rouge and I made your food! Then Papa made your yucky juice!" Nora cackled in delight. Pyrrha's smile became strained.

"That's sweet, Argent!" Pyrrha praised. She reached down and patted the blonde-haired child. "Thank you, sweetie." Argent smiled happily. Pyrrha began eating in earnest, making Nora mock gag at her.

Jaune simply smiled at his wife as he sat beside her. Rouge and Argent quickly crawled into his lap. He smiled at them and held them close as he smiled at his family. He couldn't believe how luck he has been in the last few years. The safety of his team. A family. And friends he could rely on.

But thinking on that, he wondered how Team RWBY and CVFY and Goodwitch were doing. He couldn't help but worry about them. He wasn't sure what had happened to them, and that weighed on his mind.

But he shook it off, knowing they could take care of themselves. They were strong. Right now, he had to worry about his team and family. They needed him at the moment.

And for Jaune Arc, that was all he needed to know at the moment.

* * *

 _ **Nora: Hey! Awesome readers! Nora here with the preview of Taken, but Returned!**_

 _ **Pyrrha, Ren, and Jaune: Nora…**_

[Scene pans to a massive gothic castle atop a snowy mountain, with a small white-haired girl running about.]

 _ **Nora: We take a look at a school of magic! Isn't that exciting?!**_

 _ **Pyrrha, Ren, and Jaune: Nora…**_

[Scene pans to show an older Weiss Schnee with a large furry overcoat being handed a large wooden box.]

 _ **Nora: And guess who makes sure thing whole place run smoothly?! Our very own flat chested heiress Weiss Schnee!**_

 _ **Pyrrha, Ren, Jaune: NORA!**_

 _ **Weiss: (growling) Who are you calling 'flat chested,' Valkyrie?!**_

 _ **Argent and Rouge: Next time: The Headmistress of Winterhold!**_

[Screen pans to Weiss tucking the white-haired girl into bed with a smile.]

 _ **Jaune: Weiss! You can't kill Nora! She's important to the story!**_

 _ **Weiss: I don't care! Let me at her!**_


	4. Headmistress of Winterhold

**Taken, but Returned**

 **An: Yo! Back with another chapter! Hope it's good.**

* * *

 _ **Four**_

 _The Headmistress of Winterhold_

* * *

Eyes as blue as an azure sky blinked slowly as Lilla Schnee stared down at the town below her. Her dull brown fur coat made her snow-white hair stand out even more. She watched as the people bustled about, wondering what they were doing, always moving around in meaningless patterns. She pushed herself up further on the ledge she was hanging on, hoping to see more of the busybodies.

"Youngling!" Lilla looked behind her to see her Nanny, Lydia, racing towards her. The housecarl quickly closed the distance between them and snatched the girl of the ledge. She yelped in surprise as Lydia held the girl close.

"You know you are not allowed near the perimeter walls, youngling," she admonished sternly, frowning at the child.

The child in question pouted. "I am five years old now, Lydia," she said. "I won't fall off!"

"Your mother is not as sure as you," Lydia countered, making the girl huff.

"Momma is a worrywart!" Lilla protested.

"With a child like you, I share in her sentiments," Lydia commented.

"Lydia? Lilla?" came a soft voice from behind them. The two turned to see a tall beauty with snow white hair in a side ponytail in a dark fur overcoat walking towards them. The only thing marring her beauty was a large patch of scar tissue around the front of her neck, with scars reaching just past her chin, and an asymmetrical scar over her left eye. Blue eyes shined in the dim light of the sun as Lilla smiled widely. This was Weiss Schnee, headmistress of the College of Winterhold, and Lilla's mother.

"Momma!" the girl cried as Lydia released the child so she could race over to her mother. The woman smiled widely as she easily caught the child and held her close.

"Lilla, what are you doing out here? I thought you were playing with Sa'Vara in the amphitheater?" Weiss asked.

"She was hanging off the perimeter walls again, my Lady," Lydia informed with a bow. The mage frowned at the woman before turning her attention to her daughter.

"Lilla, what have I told you about that?" she asked sternly, making the child huff, again…

"Momma, you worry too much!" Lilla protested. "I wasn't gonna fall!"

"It's a mother's job to worry, dear," Weiss countered easily. "After all, with a child as fearless as you, _someone_ has to worry for you!"

"But Momma, you're fearless too!" Lilla told her, making the woman chuckle. Lilla liked it when her momma laughed. She had a pretty voice that sounded like bells!

"I used to be, sweetie," her mother said kindly. "But then I had you!"

"I'll say!" Lydia said, rolling her eyes. "Very few people could keep up with you back then, my Lady." Lilla's mother frowned.

"Lydia, we agreed never to talk about those times again, and how many times have I told you to call me Weiss?" she asked. Lydia chuckled.

"More times than I care to count actually," Lydia commented, making Weiss's frown deepen. "Don't frown at me, _My Lady;_ you know you look ferocious when you glare like that!" All that did was make the glare harden. "Alright! Alright! I get it! Stop with the glare! You're scary!"

"Momma's not scary!" Lilla told Lydia with a pout, making Lydia laugh.

"Youngling, your mother is one of the scariest people I know! And I've stared Death in the face more times than I'm willing to count!" the housecarl snickered. "The Dragonborn was even scared of her, and he defeated the Black Dragon, for ancients' sakes!" Weiss chuckled at that.

"That stubborn man!" the headmistress giggled, a dainty hand covering her mouth. "But I suppose it could not be helped. He was a Nord, after all!"

"Excuse you, my Lady!" Lydia frowned. "But just what's that supposed to mean?!" Weiss only laughed louder.

"Oh, Lydia, if I have to tell you, then it's probably best you _don't_ know!" Weiss said grinning.

"And you wonder why I refused to call you by your name, my Lady!" Lydia grumbled, but she couldn't help but smile at her friend. It had been thirteen years since she met Weiss, and Lydia could still remember the first time she met the younger woman.

* * *

 _Flashback**_

 _Lydia's eyes squinted against the harsh winds of Winterhold as she climbed the steps to the College. Her teeth chattered as she forced herself further into her large fur overcoat. "Why are we in this ancestors' forsaken land?" she stuttered out._

 _Her Thane, Garrett Silverwind, stood tall against the weather. His dark hair was tied back in a ponytail and his blue eyes shined in amusement as he turned back to her. "I have an interest in learning magic," he said simply. "The College of Winterhold is said to be the best to learn the craft, I'm told. And since I'm apparently destined to fight that black dragon that destroyed Helgen, I need every edge I can conceivably gain."_

" _But could you not learn magic from the Jarl's mage?" she inquired in annoyance._

" _He's the one who suggested I travel here," Garrett told her with a chuckle. He turned back to his front and exclaimed, "Ah! We're here!" Lydia looked up and gasped in awe. It was hard to due to the snowfall but up close…Lydia couldn't help but be amazed by the towering structure._

" _They sure know how to impress!" Garrett whistled. Lydia agreed with a nod._

" _Truly!" Lydia looked around at the architecture. "This place must be decades old at the least, and it still stands strong against the winds!"_

" _I wonder if magic is involved in that," Garrett mused as he walked forward. "I cannot wait to-Ugh!" He cut himself off as he ran into someone, sending book and papers flying everywhere. The person grunted softly as they fell to the ground._

" _My thane!" Lydia cried as she reached down to help him. Garrett steadied himself and stared down at the person he ran into. Lydia did as well. The person was woman, a Nord just barely out of her youth, much like her Thane, with white hair that was tied back in a side ponytail. She held a hand to her head as she tried to work out the pain from being hit. She wore white robes and a dark coat over them, but the biggest eye catchers were her scars. One asymmetrical one over her left eye and a MASSIVE one over her neck, as if she were attacked by some animal._

'What could have done that?!' _Lydia couldn't help but wonder as Garrett quickly helped the mage up._

" _Sorry about that, Ma'am," he said as he lifted her up. "I was admiring the architecture and was not looking where I was going." The young woman finally steadied herself and opened her eyes. Ice blue eyes glared at Garrett with a gaze that even froze Lydia where she stood._

 _How was this younger Nord so intimidating?_

 _Garrett had to blink at the fierce glare. "Uh…Miss…?" He was cut off suddenly, a black glyph appeared below the Nord. Lydia tensed for a fight, but several more glyphs appeared in front of all the pages that had fallen from her hands. They then quickly flew towards the woman's outstretched hand. After the last page entered the pile, she grabbed them out of the air._

 _Lydia was gob smacked at the display of magic while Garrett was staring at the woman. "That was impressive, madam!" he praised._

 _The Nord only glared heatedly at him. Garrett actually fidgeted slightly until the woman huffed quietly and walked off. Lydia blinked at the sudden dismissal, while Garrett hummed._

" _Nords get testier the further north you get," Garrett mused, as if he just learned some age-old truth._

 _Flashback end***_

* * *

Lydia chuckled at the memory as Weiss walked over to her with Lilla next to her. "I trust you'll be able to keep a sharper eye on her this time, Lydia?" the headmistress asked teasingly. Lydia snorted.

"You could have eyes of a dragon, and this one would still disappear on you!" she snarked. "But I'll try and keep her under wraps!" She held her arms out, and Weiss motioned for her daughter to go to the housecarl. Lilla huffed in annoyance.

"Momma!" she whined.

"Later, sweetie," Weiss promised. "We have some very important people coming to the College today, and I must meet them at the main courtyard."

"Can I come with you?" she asked.

Weiss smiled sadly. "I'm afraid not, sweetie," she said. "They're presenting the College with a very important item, and I don't want you anywhere near it."

"What is it?"

"Nothing an innocent and pure little angel like yourself needs to concern herself with." Lilla tried to protest, but Weiss silenced her with a look. "Lilla. Stay with Lydia. Please."

Lilla felt the fight in her fade. When her mother looked at her like that, it meant she was doing something that she considered dangerous.

Dangerous enough to warrant Lilla to be near Lydia at all times.

Her momma had only done that twice before. Lilla found herself hesitantly nodding to her mother's demands. Weiss nodded, satisfied.

"I'll leave her in your capable hands, Lydia," Weiss said. The housecarl nodded.

"As you command, My Lady," she responded.

* * *

 **With Weiss**

Weiss stood outside the College of Winterhold, immobile as a statue. Several prominent mages-ranging from masters to apprentices to professors to students-formed a tight group around her. They were eager, as was to be expected. They were about to be given a very prestigious artifact to study, after all.

Weiss stayed silent amidst hushed conversations and whispers around her. Her mind was laser focused on the prize just moments away from her. She remained impassive for but another moment before she stared up at the bleak grey clouds. A storm was brewing. She hummed quietly. She'd have to double the magic of the heating runes around the College tonight. The storm looked to be stronger than normal.

"Headmistress Schnee?" a voice called out, breaking Weiss out of her musings. She looked up to see a contingent of mages in dark colored robes strolling up to her group. She nodded to them.

"I am she," she said in a quiet voice. Though her voice box had long since healed from the Mutant Ursa thirteen years ago, it was easier on her throat to speak in a lower register. "I presume you are the Ayleid Scholars?"

"That we are, Headmistress," the leader of the Ayleid Scholars greeted cordially. "I am Rodrick of Cyrodriil." He looked around at the majesty around him. "I must confess, Headmistress Schnee, it's been over thirty years since I've stepped foot on the College's grounds, and to see how you've restored it to its former glory is a sight to behold!"

Weiss smiled at that. "Yes. I am most proud of it, myself."

When she had been rescued all those years ago, the College of Winterhold was little more than crumbling ruins. But through her studies of Skyrim's magic and learning she could harness magic herself; she found a way to restore the place that had essentially become her home. It took several attempts, but in the end, she had done it. Her new home was whole. With the College restored, they had more room to expand. As such, they had an explosive increase in new students. So many had come to learn of the magic that restored the College, the staff had feared they were not enough to teach them all!

Luckily, with the new students came new staff as well. Scholars wishing to learn the history of Winterhold. Mages who wished to offer their services to the College. Sorcerers from all around flocked to the College to aid what had become the largest magic school known. And they were still growing!

"Can I assume the College's restoration is in part thanks to the new branch of rune magic you created?" Rodrick asked.

"Well, part of it was thanks to my semblance, but yes most of the restoration was thanks to that," Weiss confirmed.

"Then this makes us more interested in your agreement, Headmistress Schnee," another mage from the Ayleid Scholars commented. "The opportunity to learn your Semblance Runes is not a prospect one could turn down easily."

"Indeed," Rodrick nodded. "We are grateful for this partnership, Headmistress Schnee."

"As am I, Rodrick, for the opportunity your organization in allowing the College to have," Weiss said back. "If it is not too much trouble, may I see it?"

"Of course! No trouble at all," Rodrick said easily as he turned to one of his compatriots and nodded to them. They produced a wooden box and handed it to him. He nodded again and turned back to Weiss, holding the box out to her. She nodded in gratitude and grabbed it. She pulled it close and opened the lid, revealing what she had been looking for, for 5 years.

An Elder Scroll.

Weiss smiled as she closed the lid of the box. "Thank you," she said gratefully. "This will be most beneficial for us here at the College."

The scholar was about to reply when suddenly Weiss's face morphed into impassive stone as a glyph appeared beside Rodrick. Suddenly, the glyph turned black and slammed into a dark cloaked individual and pressed them to the ground, forcing a surprised yelp out of the perpetrator. Rodrick and the other scholars jumped away from the glyph.

"What in the name of Talos?!" one mage shouted. Boris of Dawnstar, a teacher of the College who Weiss chose specifically to train younger applicants, rushed forward with sword in hand. He frowned at the man being held by his boss's magic.

"Thieves' Guild," he spoke, making Weiss's eyes narrow.

"It would seem those little gnats haven't learned to stay out of Winterhold," she grumbled in annoyance.

"Or perhaps they were drawn out by rumors of an Elder Scroll coming to the college?" a young mage offered. Weiss grimaced.

"I thought we had suppressed those rumors, but it would appear we may still have a leak somewhere," she muttered. Turning to staff, she spoke, "Fan out! Where one Thieves' Guild member, there's bound to be more of them."

"Yes, Headmistress!" the group shouted and dispersed. Weiss turned back to the Ayleid Scholars but froze when she heard a very familiar child scream in fear. Terror clenched her heart, and her face hardened.

Arrogant rapscallions! They just sealed their fates…

* * *

 **A few moments earlier**

Lilla managed to escape Lydia again.

It was super hard too! Despite Lilla being small for her age, Lydia had learned to easily identify the white-haired girl. Lilla couldn't understand it! She blended in with the snow; how could Lydia find her?!

Still, Sa'Vara, her Khajiit friend, was good at distracting Lydia. While she was keeping the housecarl busy, Lilla quietly exited the courtyard she was taken too by Lydia. The young Schnee smiled at hers and Sa'Vara's cleverness. They made an awesome team!

Now she only needed two more girls, and she'd be like Momma's team!

The stories her momma would tell her about her old team were fantastical tales of four girls fighting against an untamable darkness and were some of Lilla's favorite stories to listen to at night. Just after tales of the Dragonborn, of course!

Lilla reached her destination and stopped to observe her surroundings. No one was around. She smiled as she made a break for it, hoping to find her mother quickly and find out what was being brought to her home that had her momma's attention.

Suddenly, she was grabbed from behind. She screamed in fright until a gloved hand pressed against her mouth. "Quiet brat!" a voice hissed, making the young maiden struggle harder.

"Harker!" another voice whispered harshly. "Let the girl go! We have a deadline here!"

"Brat is that white-haired bitch's daughter!" Harker retorted. "I recognize this white hair anywhere!" Harker's partner turned to him.

"It hardly matters whose daughter she is!" he whispered back. "We have a rare opportunity here! Your vendetta against Schnee is going to cost us our chance to get that Elder Scroll!"

"Shut up, Carsk!" Harker shouted. "That witch took everything from me! Now I'll return the favor!"

"Oh? And how might you do that, cretin?"

Both men tensed at the familiar cold voice before they were frozen solid. Lilla shivered at the biting cold before she was seized away from her frozen embrace. Weiss held Lilla close to her bosom and whispered all manner of comforting words to her little girl. Lilla latched herself to her mother and shivered violently, the fear still clinging to her small frame like melting snow.

"Headmistress/My Lady!" came Boris's and Lydia's combined cries as they reached the mother and daughter.

"…Take care of the trash, Lydia…" Weiss's voice was cold as she turned and walked away. "Boris, have Talic tend to the Alyeid Scholars. I need to care for Lilla." The two nodded as they stared at the scene before them: an entire courtyard, frozen solid, with two Thieves' Guild member ice sculptures.

* * *

 **Later that night; Weiss's and Lilla's room**

"…What am I going to do with you, sweetie?" Weiss whispered quietly as she Lilla sat on the youngest Schnee's bed. Weiss and Lilla's room fairly large, with Weiss and Lilla's beds on one side near a large fireplace while Weiss's workstation sat on the other side. A large embroidered rug sat in the middle of the room, and bookshelves filled with books, scrolls, and manuscripts lined every other wall.

Lilla squirmed under her mother's stare. "I'm sorry Momma…" she mumbled meekly. Weiss sighed tiredly.

"I know, Lilla," she reassured. "I'm just sorry that I hadn't seen those vandals showing up." She frowned. "Especially since that one had some vendetta against me."

"Why did he hate you, Momma?" her daughter inquired curiously.

"I don't know, Lilla, but I'm surprised he did," Weiss commented. "I've made many enemies when I traveled with the Dragonborn." Of course, at the mention of her hero, Lilla lit up like a lightning bug.

"Was the Dragonborn cool, Momma?!" she asked in excitement. Weiss chuckled happily.

"He was a dork!" she said, earning a scandalized gasp from her daughter.

"No!" she whispered quietly. Weiss just grinned and nodded.

"Oh, yes," Weiss confirmed. "He was a total dork!" She leaned in close and whispered to her daughter, "He liked to think up goofy nicknames for everyone and name his quests with very long and hilarious names!"

"Nooo!" Lilla moaned in distress, grabbing her pillow and shoving her face into it. Weiss giggled happily as she teased her daughter a little longer before she began telling Lilla of the times she met and teamed up with the Dragonborn.

"It was never automatic for me," Weiss explained. "He constantly badgered me to join his group. At the time, I wanted nothing to do with him. He seemed too…" She smirked here. "… _dorky_ for me to deal with!"

"Momma!" Lilla whined into her pillow.

Lydia, who had arrived sometime during the story, laughed uproariously. "Youngling, I can vouch for the Dragonborn being quite the goof!" she snickered.

"Noooooooooooo!" the young Schnee maiden cried, forcing her face further into her pillow. Weiss laughed gently.

"Don't worry, Lilla," Weiss said. "Him being a dork was one of his many positive features!"

"You're just saying that!" Lilla whimpered from behind the pillow.

"Maybe," Weiss said sweetly. "But the Dragonborn was truly a hero at heart, despite his faults." Lilla looked up at that.

"Really?" she asked. Weiss smiled.

"Really." Lilla's smile returned as Weiss ceased her teasing and finished the story of how the Dragonborn defeated the monstrous Black Dragon Alduin. Lilla would smile widely at how the heroes would wound the evil dragon, but she would hide behind her pillow when one was hurt. When Weiss finally finished her story, Lilla smiled happily.

"And what happened next Momma?!" Lilla wondered excitedly. Weiss hide a sad smile behind a happier one as she ruffled her daughter's hair gently.

"They lived happily ever after, of course!" she said easily. "I returned to the College, and Lydia followed, while the Dragonborn began traveling, saving others who needed his help."

"He's so amazing!" Lilla said happily. She yawned in exhaustion and rubbed her eyes. "Not like Papa…"

"Now, Lilla," Weiss spoke. "That's not…"

"He left you, Momma," Lilla puffed out angrily. "I'm not stupid, Momma. I know you cry that he left you."

Weiss felt her heart clench at the admission of her daughter catching her moments of weakness. She steeled herself and said softly, "You don't know the whole story, sweetie." She began tucking Lilla into bed and continued, "He felt he had no choice."

"He hurt you, Momma," Lilla interrupted, eyes drooping. "He made you cry. I won't forgive him for that." She yawned again. "Why couldn't you have fallen in love with the Dragonborn, Momma?" she wondered sleepily. "He would have been better for you." Weiss sighed.

"Maybe, sweetie," she whispered, leaning down to kiss Lilla's head. "Maybe…" Weiss moved to lay next to Lilla and said, "Goodnight, sweetie…"

"Goodnight, Momma," she mumbled back, squirming in her bed to get comfortable. "Goodnight, Lydia…"

"Pleasant dreams, Youngling," the housecarl said back as Lilla's eyes fluttered closed. Weiss smiled down at her daughter and stayed by her until Lilla fell into a deep sleep.

Weiss sighed in fatigue as she eased her way off Lilla's bed and stretched. She moved to her desk as Lydia spoke to her: "You know she'll find out eventually, right?"

"I know," Weiss sighed as she collapsed in her chair. "She's too smart for someone her age."

"Why don't you just tell her, My Lady?" Lydia inquired.

"You know why, Lydia," Weiss said, rubbing her eyes. She grabbed some papers and continued, "Lilla idolizes Garrett. I can't take that away from her…" She hung her head. "I've taken enough from her…" Lydia growled at that. She stomped over to Weiss and yanked the papers out of her hand. Weiss turned to her sharply.

"Dammit Weiss!" she hissed angrily. "How many times must we go through this?! That decision was Garrett's! Not yours!" She glared at the younger woman, who just stared at her dully.

"If I had known…"

"No!" Lydia grabbed Weiss shoulder and shook her. "Stop that! Garrett chose to stay behind in Sovngarde! Even after finding out you were pregnant with his child, he did the _noble_ thing and got us out!" She regarded Weiss critically. "He thought it was for the best, not only for you, but for his child, Weiss," she said in a softer tone.

"I'm aware, Lydia," she whispered quietly. "It doesn't change the hurt I felt." She turned away from Lydia. "And in a way, I did take away Garrett from her. After all, he did that because of me," she said softly.

Lydia shook her head. "He did it _for_ his wife and child," she amended. "I can guarantee that's all he was thinking about when he made that decision." Weiss didn't look up at her as she snagged her papers back and began reading over them. Lydia sighed. "Weiss," she said after a few minutes, rubbing the back of her neck, "today's been rough on you. Get some rest."

"Can't," she said, flipping to another page. "I need to…"

She didn't finish as Lydia silently knocked her out with a quick hit to the neck, catching her before her head hit the desk. The housecarl sighed as she quickly picked up Weiss and carried her over to her bed. She laid the elder Schnee down and pulled the covers over her. Lydia rubbed her eyes as she recalled her Thane's final order to her:

" _Take care of Weiss for me,"_ he had said with a smile.

She groaned inaudibly. "Of course, I'd have to deal with a whole family of stubborn fools," she bemoaned as she walked over to the door and locked it, before she moved to a side door that lead to her own living quarters.

* * *

 _ **Weiss: Hello, dear readers. This is Weiss Schnee here with the preview of the next chapter of Taken, but Returned.**_

[Scene pans to an old fortress with flags emblazoned with a wolf howling at the moon.]

 _ **Weiss: Next up is a world similar that's besieged by a terrible darkness. Kind of like Remnant.**_

[Scene pans to the Lieutenant barging in on a sleeping Blake, who awakes abruptly and falls out of the chair she fell asleep in.]

 _ **Weiss: In such a world as this, it pays to be 'overly observant.' Hehe…Otherwise, the darkness may swallow you up…**_

[Scene pans to Sun and his group being ambushed by Darkspwan.]

 _ **Weiss: Next time: The Fangs of Ostagar.**_

[Scene pans to Blake running to meet King Calin and his queen.]

 _ **Weiss: Really, Blake? And I thought I overslept.**_

* * *

 **An: The name "Lilla" comes from my friend Lincoln Time, and means "purple" in Norwegian/Danish.**


	5. Fangs of Ostagar

**Taken, but Returned**

 **An: A fan made the comment that Middle Earth wasn't much of a challenge for Ruby and the others. I felt the same for a while until I compared level caps, bought the game Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor, and conversed with my friend Lincoln Time. I want to assure my readers that team JNPR will not be left behind by RWBY. Now then, on with the story!**

* * *

 _ **Five**_

 _The Fangs of Ostagar_

* * *

 **Royal palace of Orzammar**

"Thank you for speaking with me, your Majesty. It's been a few years since we talked last," spoke a blonde-haired, blue eyed man of thirty years of age to a diminutive redheaded man of the same age. The blonde was tall and wore dark, light weight, studded leather armor over a dusty coat and jeans, that were tucked into metal boots. Two sets of red and gold nunchucks rested in holsters at his waist. A blonde monkey tail sashayed freely behind him.

This was Sun Wukong, Commander of the White Fang's forces.

"Hahaha! Indeed, it has, Sun!" the man said loudly. He was a dwarf, wearing well-worn heavy iron armor with a braided red beard. A massive stone axe rested next to the dwarf's throne. He was Kriss, King of the dwarven kingdom of Orzammar, and scourge of the Deep Roads. "About five years, if my math's right. You and Blake don't come by as often anymore!"

Sun laughed. "Yeah, we've been quite busy!" he admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "But you've been busy too, huh? I hear the trams are making traversing the Deep Roads much easier."

Kriss laughed again. "Thanks to that Atleasian tech y'all brought with 'cha, we dwarves have been churning out new technologies for the whole of Thedas! We might now be on the scale of yer old home, Sunny boy, but I'm positive we'll get there soon!"

"I look forward to it!" Sun smiled as nostalgia flooded him. Indeed, thirteen years ago, when he landed on Thedas with Blake, the White Fang and Atleasian troops, they actually had a small cache of weapons, Dust, and tech that had the dwarves of their new home scrambling for. Blake, having been unwittingly named the leader of the collected mismatched group by King Calin, was more than happy to lend them engineers and technicians for them to reverse engineer what they had. After the Blight, some of those engineers even stayed with the dwarves, feeling their time was better spent with them (and others just didn't want to stay with the White Fang).

"So do I!" the dwarf king said, beaming. "But what about you, Sun? What's got 'cha outta Ostagar?" he asked. "I don't think it was a social call." Sun sighed.

"Sadly, it's not," The monkey Faunus agreed, rubbing the back of his head. "It's about the Darkspawn, and their worryingly increasing numbers." He sobered up and stared unflinchingly at his friend. "We at the White Fang have had to fend off no less than fifteen excursions of Darkspawn from out of the Wilds in the past month."

Kriss sobered up as well. "Aye. It's been the same here in the Deep Roads," he admitted, sinking back into his chair. "We've been fending off large hordes of the devils for the better part of three months now. They just keep coming! We kill off one hoard, another is right on the heels of it! They've never been this tenacious! It's almost as if…"

"…They're trying to distract us, right?" Sun asked, finishing the dwarf's sentence.

Kriss nodded grimly. "Aye. I take it it's like that at Ostagar?"

"Almost exactly like that," Sun confirmed. "They've attacked the tunnel they dug back in the Fifth Blight under the tower five times within two weeks. They haven't done that in nearly ten years."

"You think they're up to something?"

"I'd be stupid not to think they had something up their rotted, maggot riddled sleeves. That's what I'm hoping for in coming to you, your Majesty: I was hoping you would have some idea since the Darkspawn are more prominent here."

"Bah! Sun, ya helped me expose my brother's plot to take the throne for his own malevolent gain: I think ya've more than earned to call me by my given name!" Kriss said with a wave of his hand. "But to your question: I can't help ya. I don't have any more information you do. In fact, I had almost convinced myself they were just being more ornery than normal until talking to ya." Sun frowned.

"Dammit!" he cursed. "I was hoping for more!" Kriss looked at him in sympathy.

"I understand, friend," he placated. "Wish I could do more ta help, but I can't read the minds of those wretches."

"One only wishes he could," the Faunus groused. He sighed. "That's disappointing."

"I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help to ya," Kriss apologized.

"No, you've been a great help," Sun told him smiling. "I was just hoping the Darkspawn would have been more telling here, since they inhabit the Deep Roads and all…"

"It was a fair assumption, friend," the dwarf king agreed. "But it would seem those beasts may be a tad more organized than we thought, if this is indeed some giant conspiracy."

"Let's…hope that's not the case, Kriss," Sun said with a grimace. Kriss grimaced as well.

"Yeah." Kriss shook his head of the negativity, and stated, "But let's get off that! When are you and Blake coming back as a pair?! We still need to finish off that barrel of mead I had brewed for you two's wedding!" Sun chuckled at that.

"That will be whenever we can get Blake to _actually_ stop working!" he admitted sheepishly. "Heck, if it wasn't for the Lieutenant and myself, Blake wouldn't get any sleep at all!"

Kriss laughed loudly at that. "That girl!" he hollered as he slapped his knee. "Never have I met a workaholic like her! She makes us dwarves look lazy!"

"Aren't you all already lazy? Given that all you do is fight, and drink mead all day?" Sun teased, causing the king's laughter to increase.

"True enough!" he confessed. He sighed contently. "Ah. Those were the days," he reminisced.

"They were…" Sun sighed tiredly. "As much as I'd like to stay, I'm afraid that I'd best be off. Tensions between the Circle and the Templars has been growing worse as of late."

"Yeesh! I don't envy you! Gettin' involved with that mess is something this dwarf wants nothing to do with!" Kriss exclaimed. "But I wish you the best of luck!"

"Thanks! I'll need it!"

"Oh! And don't be a stranger, Sun! And bring Blake with 'cha next time!" Sun laughed at the proclamation made by the dwarf king.

"No promises!" he said as he turned to walk off. "Goodbye for now, Kriss!"

"Pleasant travels, Sun!" the king called back as Sun walked out of the throne room with a sigh.

Yet another dead end, but at least, he now knew they weren't the only ones affected. Blake might be a bit pleased with that, but knowing her, she'd just get more paranoid and get LESS sleep than she was currently getting. The thought that Kriss still had some mead left over from his and Blake's wedding crossed his mind, making him chuckle.

Maybe he could convince Blake to come to Orzammar with him on a much-deserved vacation…

Well, one could only hope.

* * *

 **Ostagar castle, same time**

Far to the south of the kingdom of Orzammar, there stood the castle of Ostagar. Thirteen years ago, it was little more than crumbling ruins. Now, it was restored to its former glory. The massive structure was a monolith of stone and steel, standing tall amongst the trees of the Wilds. Scoured around the fortress, blue flags baring a white wolf howling up at a white moon fluttered strongly in the wind.

Around the ramparts, soldiers walked around on their normal guard rounds. Humans, elves, dwarves, and Faunus alike littered the fortress as they performed their duties with the upmost diligence. One such soldier was walking through a courtyard, a tray of food in hand. He was tall, burly, and wore a full-face mask. This was the Lieutenant, the White Fang's Head of Recruitment.

Currently, the mountain of a man had a certain destination in mind. He said nothing to the passing men and women around him as they greeted him. He was on a deadline, after all. Along his way, he heard a childish, feminine whine from around a corner and chuckled silently. He walked towards the noise and turned a corner to see a young child in a simple tunic and pants turning circles in a nervous manner. The Lieutenant laughed loudly.

"Lost, kid?" he called out, making the child turn to him abruptly. The kid was female, though very tomboyish in looks with her short cropped brown hair and facial features. The only real indicators she was female were her voice and her big, soulful blue-gray eyes. Her name was Ashlyn, and she was now Blake's protégé.

"L-Lieutenant!" she stammered, scrambling into what he assumed was meant to be a formal pose. "W-What are you doing out this early?!" The burly Faunus chuckled again.

"My job, sadly," he told her, making her blink owlishly. "Sun's not here to do it, so I'm afraid it falls to me." He looked down at the girl. "What about you? Why are you up this early?"

Ashlyn went wide eyed. "O-Oh! I-I-I was looking for M-Mrs. Wukong!" she said, wringing her hands together. "B-But I don't remember where she said her room was! I-I was l-looking a-and got turned around!" The Lieutenant chuckled a bit, making the girl pout his way.

"L-Lieutenant…" she mumbled in embarrassment.

"Don't sweat it, kid," he told her. "Since the restoration, this place can get confusing for newcomers." He motioned behind him with his head. "Come on. I'm heading that way myself. I'll take you there."

Ashlyn perked up at that. "Y-You sure…?" she questioned. The Lieutenant nodded.

"Absolutely. Now let's go," he said, heading down a hallway.

"O-Ok!" Ashlyn quickly caught up with him and tried to keep pace with him. The walk was silent, for the most part. Ashlyn stared out in front of her, hoping to try and memorize the route, while the Lieutenant strolled along quietly. Finally, Ashlyn couldn't take the silence and looked at the tray of food in the Faunus's hands.

"S-So…? What's with the food, Lieutenant?" she asked hesitantly.

"Hm? Oh. You see, your new teacher is a tiny bit scatterbrained, and she tends to forget little things like eating…" Lieutenant commented. "…bathing…and sometimes sleeping." Ashlyn's eyes widened.

"Y-You're joking, right?" she asked. The Lieutenant chuckled.

"'Fraid not, kiddo," he said dully. "Typically, Sun's here to drag her back, but since he's not scheduled to be back from Orzammar for another few days, I've got to do it. It's a crap job, but it's gotta be done."

"W-Why doesn't she do that stuff on her own?" Ashlyn inquired.

"She usually does, but she's also a known workaholic," the Lieutenant explained. "She gets so buried in her work, she loses-Ah! Here we are!" Ashlyn stopped as the Lieutenant moved to a set of mahogany double doors. The young maiden stared at the door for a moment before turning back to the Lieutenant.

"S-So, do we knock?" she asked.

"Certainly! We're completely civilized men and women here, kid!" the Faunus agreed willingly. With that, he raised his leg up and kicked the doors opened violently with a loud, "BLAKE!"

"GGAAAAAYYYYYYHHHHHHHHHHHH!" came the responding shout and a loud crash. Ashlyn's eyes widened in distress and raced forward to see what happened. Her distress mounted at the sight before her.

"M-MRS. WUKONG!" she cried out and raced forward to the downed woman. She was thirty years old and possessed long black hair and amber colored eyes. Her attire consisted of a white jacket over a black tank top that showed off her midriff, and dark skin tight pants tucked into boots. Her most eye-catching trait, however, were the cat ears sitting pretty on top of her head. This was Blake Belladonna-Wukong, high Chieftain of the White Fang.

Blake groaned as she pushed her upper half off the floor, holding her head with one hand and her eyes closed. Ashlyn ran to her side and knelt beside her. "M-Mrs. Wukong! A-Are you ok?!" she asked frantically.

"A-Ashlyn?" Blake mumbled blearily. She opened one eye and asked, "What are you doing in here?"

"I let 'er in, Blake," the Lieutenant commented with a snicker. Blake opened her eyes and glared fully at the intruder.

"Lieutenant!" she growled. "What. Have I said, about barging into my room unannounced?!"

"To not to, unless the situation calls for it," he recited in boredom. "And, Blake, the situation calls for it. Or did you forget what today is?"

"Today?" the cat Faunus frowned as tried to remember what was so special about today. After a moment of thought, she paled dramatically. "Gyahh!" Blake jumped up abruptly, startling Ashlyn. "THE ANNIVERSARY!"

"Which is why I've brought you some breakfast," the Lieutenant commented, gesturing to the plater in his hands. "Then, you'll need to take a shower, get yourself presentable, and get to the Tower of Ishal pronto. His majesty King Cailan is a mere hour out from here."

"HIS MAJESTY IS ALMOST HERE?! LIEUTENANT! WHY DIDN'T YOU WAKE ME SOONER?!" Blake screamed as she ran towards her dresser. "LIEUTENANT! TAKE ASHLYN TO WYNNE AND TELL HER TO HAVE HER READY! I'LL BE DOWN AS SOON AS I CAN!" she ordered, practically ripping the drawers open and grabbing several articles of clothing.

"Yes, ma'am," the burly Faunus chuckled as he walked over and placed the tray of food on a table. He then grabbed Ashlyn by the shoulder and said, "Come on, kiddo; time to let the chief rush through her morning routine."

"I WOULDN'T HAVE TO RUSH IF YOU HAD DECIDED TO WAKE ME SOONER!" the chieftain retorted hotly as she raced into her bathroom. The Lieutenant laughed hard as he escorted the young maiden out of the room and shut the door. Ashlyn glanced up at him in bewilderment.

"W-What just happened?" she asked. The Lieutenant laughed.

"What you just saw was Blake resorting her priorities!" he commented. "Now then, let's get you to Wynne, kid. Like I said, the king's on his way, and we need you ready."

"Who needs to be ready?" The two turned to the new voice to see an older woman with long white hair walking towards them. This was Wynne, a former Circle mage and head of magical affairs for the White Fang.

"Ah Wynne! Excellent timing!" The Lieutenant motioned Ashlyn towards the woman. "Blake wants you to get Ashlyn ready for the king's arrival while she gets ready." Wynne looked at the recruitment officer in amusement.

"You decided to wait till the last minute to wake her, didn't you?" she asked.

"I will neither confirm or deny that statement," the Lieutenant answered vaguely. Wynne sighed in exasperation.

"Lieutenant," she droned. "You haven't changed a bit." The man chuckled.

"Well, I'll leave you ladies to it," he said, changing the subject. "I've got to the Tower of Ishal before the king does. Good day, ladies!" He waved goodbye as he turned and walked away. Wynne sighed again.

"That man," she groaned. "Sometimes, I wonder if he still has some sort of grudge against Blake."

"D-Does he hate M-Mrs. Wukong?" Ashlyn asked the mage. Wynne shook her head.

"Not anymore, I'd wager, but it wasn't always that way," Wynne explained. "There was a time when the two of them were at each-others' throats."

"Why?"

"Well, they had two very different mentalities, my dear. Lieutenant and Blake were constantly at odds." Wynne sighed. "It's been a long time since those days, but sometimes I wonder if the Lieutenant's behavior is some form of passive-aggressiveness where Blake's concerned."

"B-But aren't they comrades?" Ashlyn asked.

"Yes, but during the Fifth Blight, they were barely hospitable with each other…"

 _Flashback**_

" _I WILL NOT BE UNDER THIS TRAITOR'S SUBJUGATION!" the Lieutenant shouted heatedly at the golden-haired king. Calin sighed in exhaustion, but before he could retaliate, an Atleasian officer spoke up._

" _Not only is the Atleasian military not in the business of working alongside terrorists," he spat. "We are also not going to be led by a, presumably, former terrorist, whose loyalty is questionable, at best!"_

" _Hey! Blake's proven herself trustworthy more than enough times, already!" Sun interjected hotly, heedless of Blake's cries for him to stay silent. Wynne sighed as she stayed silent and observed the argument._

" _But her past affiliations put all her decisions in question!" the officer replied in kind._

" _While I am of the opinion," the Grey Warden Duncan spoke, wincing as he rolled his injured shoulder; "that she is a bit young, I believe she has proven herself to be a capable leader out on those plains. If she was truly as shifty as you see her, she could have sent you headlong into the Darkspawn horde, which even with your advanced soul manipulating abilities, would have been a death sentence."_

" _I'm not ungrateful for her out there, don't get me wrong," he backpedaled. "But the White Fang is still, first and foremost, a terrorist organization that was willing to kill innocent humans_ AND _Faunus to further their near-sighted agenda. And I am not comfortable with being under her, capable Huntress or no. I've trusted Faunus who claimed to have defected from the White Fang before, only to be stabbed in the back later."_

" _And that's far better fate than you truly deserved!" the Lieutenant whirled and fired at the officer, who turned and glared at the man._

" _And why's that, Sir?" he asked harshly._

" _Please stop this! This is getting us nowhere!" Blake finally pleaded, hoping to stop this arguing._

" _The girl is correct," Wynne agreed, finally deciding to help end the childish squabbling. "You all have agreed to ally yourselves with his majesty King Calin because he offered to aid you in your plight. As of right now, he's merely acting with your best interests at heart-"_

" _LIKE HELL HE IS!" the Lieutenant snarled again before turning to Blake. "HE WANTS US CAGED! WHY ELSE WOULD HE PLACE US UNDER THIS BITCH'S COMMAND?!"_

" _I don't want to cage you!" Blake said loudly. "And I'm not sure I want be a leader here!"_

" _Such a coward! Like always!" the burly Faunus taunted. "What Adam saw in you, I'll never understand!" Blake winced at his words, but she frowned at him._

" _I don't want to lead the White Fang as it is!" she ground out. "The White Fang as it is now is blind. They fail to see what they're doing isn't just hurting humans, but also the Faunus they swore to protect! They've destroyed countless lives, human and Faunus, for the sake of mere bloodshed! And Adam was worse! He justified the deaths of our brothers and sisters for the sake of his own vendetta! Can you really stand there and tell me you approve of Adam_ **butchering** _other Faunus simply because they refused to bow at the knee to him?! Like HE'S the chieftain?!"_

" _At least he is firm in his beliefs! Which is more than I can say for you!" the Lieutenant hissed back. "You may be Ghira's daughter, but you hold none of his conviction!"_

" _My father's conviction was spat upon by Sienna, you, and every other White Fang member who thought violence was the answer!" Blake growled. "Hell,_ _ **I**_ _spat on it! I felt Sienna's approach was the best course of action for the Faunus! But I realized that all we were doing was proving the human's right! To them, we're nothing more than animals lashing out! Can't you see that?!"_

" _We wouldn't have to lash out if they followed the laws and acknowledged us as equals!" Lieutenant snapped back._

" _Well, congratulations!" Blake sneered sarcastically. "They do! But it's not out of respect! It's fear, and anger! Thanks to you, we're nothing more than animals that are too smart to live anymore! So, thanks for absolutely nothing!"_

 _Flashback end***_

"…Even now, with their demons put to rest, the two find new and inventive ways to tear at each other's throats," Wynne concluded as she straightened the new maroon dress Ashlyn was dressed in. The young girl fidgeted slightly as Wynne moved to her hair and combed it.

"W-Was Mrs. Wukong ever hurt by him?" she asked. Wynne shook her head.

"Not that I ever saw," Wynne answered. Suddenly, a commotion caught their attention, and the two turned to the window. Far below them, they could make out a white streak running through the courtyard. Wynne chuckled.

"Looks like Blake's finished with her shower and food," Wynne said, amusement evident in her tone. Ashlyn stared down at sight of her mentor running swiftly through the crowds when she heard a trumpet sound. She flinched.

"W-What was that?" she asked.

"That would be King Cailan arriving!" Wynne answered. "Come now, little one. Let's go meet his majesty!"

* * *

 **With the Lieutenant**

The Lieutenant stood stoically at the road leading to the Tower of Ishal as the King of Ferelden arrived with his cavalry in tow. The Faunus smiled under his mask as he walked up to Cailan as he dismounted.

"Hail, your majesty!" the Lieutenant called out. "Welcome back to Ostagar!" The golden-haired king smiled widely at the White Fang officer.

"Lieutenant!" Cailan shouted jovially. The obnoxiously tall man walked over and hugged the other obnoxiously tall man tightly. "It's been far too long, old friend!"

"That it has!" the Faunus agreed easily as they broke apart. Cailan looked around and frowned.

"Where's Blake? Don't tell me she's off training again?" the king asked, making his friend chuckle.

"No, no, she just overslept," the Lieutenant said. "Looked like she fell asleep reading some Scout reports again." The Lieutenant noticed an armored redheaded female from Cailan's assembly dismount her horse and walk up to them.

Cailan groaned dramatically. "I love that girl, truly I do, but one of these days, she's going to work herself to the grave!" he lamented.

"Smart money's on a paranoid-induced heart attack in five years," the Lieutenant laughed out. Cailan chuckled a bit himself.

"Should I be worried that you're fawning over Blake again, Cailan?" the redhead asked as she walked up beside the king. Cailan grinned and turned back to her.

"Nonsense Julia!" he proclaimed. "I would never dream of taking her away from Sun! I don't even know if I could handle her like he does, to be honest!" Julia Theirin, the former heiress of the house of Cousland turned Grey Warden and current queen of Ferelden, rolled her eyes in amusement. True. She didn't think anyone but Sun and the Lieutenant could force Blake to ease up on work. Blake was too driven to be kept still. It made the Chieftain a role model for her troops, but at the same time, it did drive her officers up literal walls! The queen shook her head in exasperation at her friend's antics.

She was about to speak again when a commotion caught the three's attention. They turned to see Blake running up to them. Julia laughed loudly. "Looks like Blake has finally caught up with you, Lieutenant!" she chortled.

"So, it would seem," the Lieutenant said. Blake gasped for breath as she bent over and put her hands on her knees, breathing heavily. The burly Faunus grinned down at her.

"'Bout time you got here, Blake!" he reprimanded teasingly. "His majesty is already here!"

"Go…" she panted. "Die alone…In the Deep Roads!"

"Pretty harsh order, wouldn't you agree, Blake?" Cailan asked through a grin.

"B…Better than he deserves, really," she mumbled as she caught her breath. She pushed off her knees and righted herself whilst taken a deep breath of fresh air. "My sincerest apologies, your majesty! I should have been here sooner!" she proclaimed with a bow. "Too much has been happening lately, I've been trying to make sense of it all!"

"Of that, I have no doubt of, Blake," Cailan said smiling. He placed a hand on her shoulder and pushed her out of her bow gently. "There is no harm done today, Blake. But I must say, you really must stop working so hard! You make me feel as if I'm slacking off!"

"Indeed. You can't shoulder the whole world on your shoulders alone, Blake," Julia said as she walked up and hugged the cat Faunus. Blake returned it easily.

"Queen Julia, despite what you may believe," here Blake glared at the Lieutenant, who looked away and whistled innocently; "I don't try and work so hard. But I believe in making sure the job is done right the first time! That is why all issues that come across my desk are dealt with, with the same intensity as everything else I do." Julia smiled at that.

"That is very admirable, Blake," the queen said brightly. "But there's a difference in dedicated, and obsessiveness!" The younger woman scowled.

"You sound like an old friend," Blake muttered. Julia smiled at that.

"Then I hope you'll take my advice and tone down your obsessive nature!" she frowned, hoping to intimidate the Faunus. Blake chuckled uneasily.

"I'll try, Queen Julia," she mumbled, wondering just how this woman was still scary after all these years.

Could it just come with being queen? The previous queen, Anora, had been quite intimidating before the traitorous Howe killed her. Or was it just Thedas women in general? Wynne was scary when she wanted to be, and Lilianna was just terrifying at times with her angelic smile and saintly demeaner.

Suddenly, Blake's ears caught the sound of Wynne calling out to them. She turned to see the woman walking up with Ashlyn next to her, fidgeting as they neared the group. The cat Faunus smiled and turned back to the king and queen and said, "Queen Julia, King Cailan? How would you like to meet my new apprentice?"

* * *

 **With Sun**

Sun and his company were making their way back to Ostagar, and they were making good time. At the rate they were going, they could probably make it back before the king left in a few days. The men were ecstatic about returning home.

"Man, I'm drinking myself into a coma as soon as my boots hit the ground!"

"Personally, I can't wait to be back in my Gretchen's arms. Two months may not be that long, but it feels like two years."

"I'll bet 'cha 10 gold that Lady Blake's probably torn off the Lieutenant's arms by the time we get back!"

"Hah! Like I'll take a sucker's bet! 20 gold on the Lieutenant forcing a newbie to be the target of the Chieftain's ire!"

Sun sighed as he continued to stare out at the cliffs before him. Upon leaving Orzammar, he was pledged with an overwhelming sense of dread. He tried to keep his mind off it, but he just couldn't. So instead, he stayed observant, hoping whatever he was feeling was just some of Blake's lingering paranoia.

"Unsettled, Commander?" came a voice from his side. He looked over to see Sten, his companion from the Fifth Blight and the hornless Qunari, next to him on his own horse. "I am as well." Sun nodded.

"Yeah. Something hasn't been right since we left Orzammar," Sun commented. "That bothers me." Sten nodded.

"Yes. It is odd-" He couldn't finish because the sound of falling rocks caught his and Sun's attention. They looked up abruptly and saw Darkspawn raining down on them accompanied by a rockslide.

* * *

 _ **Blake: Hello, dear readers. Blake here for the preview of the next chapter of Taken, but Returned.**_

[Scene shows a crowded street in Hyrule, as an older Yang walks in with a basket in her hands.]

 _ **Blake: From one war-torn land to another, we will get to see how the mystical land of Hyrule copes with the aftermath of its own terrible war.**_

[Scene pans to Yang kneeling next to several young girls, smiling as the girls present her with flowers.]

 _ **Blake: In particular, we will see how Yang deals with…Wait…Is this right?**_

[Scene shows Yang standing with her back to Zelda.]

 _ **Blake: Next time: The Dragon of Hyrule**_

[Scene shows Yang waking from a nightmare as Link attempts to calm her down.]

 _ **Blake: Deep breaths, Yang. Deep breaths.**_

* * *

 **An: So yeah. Kriss is an OC, just roll with it.**


End file.
